Notes from TNT’s Coverage of the PGA Championship from Atlanta Athletic Club, Atlanta, GA
Round One (4-7 p.m. ET) – Thursday, August 11, 2011
TNT’s Round Two coverage of the PGA Championship continues Fri., August 12 from 1 p.m. – 7 p.m. (ET).
Announcers: Ernie Johnson, Ian Baker-Finch, Bill Kratzert and Jim Huber joined by Jim Nantz, David Feherty, Peter Oosterhuis and Gary McCord
Baker-Finch on American golfer Matt Kuchar: “He’s been, if not the best, then one of the top three top performing American players in the last two years. He’s in the top 10 almost every week that he plays.”
Baker-Finch on the breaks on the greens: “Subtle is a great word (to describe the greens) because there are a few (greens) where there are (breaks) that you can’t see. Then there will be a sharp little drop-off here or there…and there are some desperately subtle breaks that guys were misreading by six inches or a foot on short putts.”
Baker-Finch on Jason Day: “He is in contention in another Major. He just keeps putting up the numbers when he needs to.”
Baker-Finch on the heat at Atlanta Athletic Club: “It’s been a long day out there in that heat…but it could be hotter.”
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At the Turn presented by ING
Johnson, Baker-Finch
Baker-Finch on Rory McIlroy’s arm injury: “Tonight is going to be the interesting part to me though. Does it improve overnight or will the pain become sharper early tomorrow morning?”
Baker-Finch on Steve Stricker’s (-7) first round: “[He was] very strong and steady with the long game and then on the greens, [he was] as superb as ever. He’s always in the top-three in every one of those categories: scrambling, sand saves, putting…all those categories.”
Baker-Finch on the low first round scores: “I’m really surprised that the scores are as good as they are.”
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Baker-Finch on how Rory McIlroy’s injury affected the other members of his threesome: “I would think that with everything going on with Rory and his [injured] wrist and all of the attention he was receiving, it would be hard for Darren Clarke and Charl Schwartzel to really concentrate on their game.”
Kratzert: “I think it was [distracting] and when you look at Darren Clarke and he just kind of ran out of gas, especially on the 12th hole. I think [McIlroy’s injury] has affected Clarke today.”
Feherty on the difficult 18th hole at Atlanta Athletic Club: “There are a lot of good amateur players that might actually just never finish this hole. It’s about as hard a finishing hole as you can imagine.”
Feherty on the golfers’ scores in the first round: “The [first round] scores are kind of freakish. The guys that shot one-over [+1], even-par or one-under [-1] have really played well today. This golf course is immensely difficult. Steve Stricker at seven-under [-7], you wouldn’t expect to see that again. If he were to break par again tomorrow it would be a tremendous achievement. So there may be a compression of the field before we get another cavalry charge coming going into the weekend.”
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