Gary Woodland struggling in his defence of the Transitions Championship title – Golf News
Gary Woodland, the Transitions Championship’s defending champion, finished seven strokes off the lead on Friday, March 16, 2012.
He managed to share the 34th place on the leaderboard at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Florida.
Woodland scored even-par 71 to successfully make the cut in the event. His first round score was three-under par 68.
He had a good start to his second round and managed two birdies on the first three holes that he played. At the end of the front nine holes, he had a one-under par score.
Later, on the par-five 11th, Woodland seemed completely out of focus and played seven shots to finish the hole.
A birdie on the very next hole equalled the score that he carried on with till the end. He made par putts on the final six holes.
Woodland is currently having trouble gaining his form back that earned him a victory in last season’s Transitions Championship.
In the six appearances of the 2012 golf season, he has not been able to make a single top-10 finish.
Moreover, he only managed to remain in the top-25 on the leaderboard once in the season. He stood 24th in the PGA Tour’s season opener, Hyundai Tournament of Champions.
Therefore, there is a big question mark on his form and his chances of successfully defending his title at Innisbrook.
According to Woodland, the game has not finished as yet and the leader, Jason Dufner, is still in approach if he plays well in the final two rounds.
All he needs is to tweak his swing, refocus and control his emotions to contend against his rivals while putting challenging scores on the leaderboard.
In the meantime, Luke Donald, the former number one, charged on his back nine to score four birdies on the first five holes that he played. He finished three strokes behind the leader at seven-under par overall score.
Donald is looking for a win in the event to regain his form that earned him several awards in the 2011 season, including the prestigious number one spot in the Official World Golf Rankings.
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