Davis' possibly costly triple bogey
IN: News | Champions | Turtle Bay Championship (2002) | Round Two | by Bruce Young | 06 Oct 2002
Rodger Davis, in his first season on the US Senior PGA Tour, knew when leading into this weeks's Turtle Bay event in Hawaii, that he needed a couple of good finishes in the next three events if he was to avoid a return to the Tour School.
Coming towards the end of a solid first season where he has had four top tens in twenty six starts he finds himself in thirtieth position on the money list with $US592,000. That would be fine on any other tour in terms of playing rights for the following season but so tough is the US Seniors Tour that only the top thirty one at season's end, unless other wise exempt, retain their card.
With just two holes play in round two of this week's Turtle Bay event in Hawaii Davis was tied in the lead with Hale Irwin, Mike Smith and Morris Hatalsky but a disastrous triple bogey at the par four seventeenth saw him drop down to tenth position at the completion of the round. He is still not without a chance of winning in tomorrow's final round, as he trails by only three, but one can only imagine how much easier the task may have been for the 51 year old rookie Australian
By rights Davis should accomplish his task this season of making the top thirty one but it he does not it may well be that one that comes back to haunt him.
Provided he can get over this first year hurdle and make the top thirty one then the future over the next few years on the USPGA Senior Tour seems very bright for him. Not a regular player in the US in his earlier career, he has adapted well to the US and seems a likely winner in the not too distant future.
Even so at $US592,000 this represents the most successful year of his career already in prizemoney terms and with three events still to come there may yet be some icing on the cake.
An audio interview with Rodger Davis, carried out prior to his departure for the US earlier this year, may be heard by clicking here.
