Charl Schwartzel honoured with 'Shot of the day' accolade: RBC Canadian Open
Charl Schwartzel carved an approach shot from the right lie on the par-4, 18th hole to have his name honoured with the Shot of the Day accolade. The South African finished two strokes shy of leaders, Chad Campbell and Michael
Thompson, to make the cut into the weekend for the RBC Canadian Open, which is taking place at the Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club in Vancouver, Canada.
Schwartzel, owner of the Green Jacket, decided to tee-off from the back. He left the opening five holes at par to keep the scorecard free from bogeys; the bogey count was recorded as the highest for these holes.
However, as soon as he stepped on the 15th tee, the winner of Joburg Opens decided to change his strategy. He took out his driver and decided to put it to the test. Aiming his tee shot onto the left side of the fairway,
Schwartzel saw it travel the distance, with the green roughly three yards away. From there, he hit a crisp iron shot and hit the green in regulation, which later laid the foundation of his first birdie.
Schwartzel hurried to the penultimate hole, which was a short, but treacherous, par-3. The player once again managed to drive the ball onto the green and earned himself another birdie.
The most crucial task awaited him on the last hole of the back nine however; the par-4 18th. Schwartzel drove the ball onto the centre of the fairway, but the ball was deflected by the wind and landed on the right rough.
Shaughnessy is known for having the toughest roughs in Canada. Despite that, the player aimed his fairway wood at the ball, smashed it across the fairway and saw it fly over the slope onto the green. The crowd gave him the applause he deserved at the meticulous
shot, which lied six feet away from the cup for a birdie.
Commenting on the fabulous shot, Schwartzel said, “Yeah, it always gives you lots of confidence if you play well under pressure in situations like these. You know, it's something to ride on.”
Schwartzel is two strokes away from the lead, and if he holds his own in the following two rounds, he surely has a chance to earn his third victory of the season.
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