Thursday, May 31, 2012

The Memorial Tournament is Providing a Tough Test

by Roz Roberts III

During the first round of the Memorial Tournament, Jack Nicklaus' Muirfield Village Golf Course provided a tough test of golf.  Difficult pin placements along with super fast greens measuring up to 14 on the stimp meter lead to high scores throughout the day.  Michael Thompson ground out a two over par 74 and is currently tied for 70th.  Michael's round included four birdies, four bogeys, and a double bogey.  Overnight and morning rain should slow the greens down a bit for the second round.

Despite the tough round and difficult finish in which he bogeyed his final two holes, Michael sounded upbeat at the end of the day.  On Twitter Michael said

Considering my poor display of ball striking, I felt like I played pretty well.  I had a great practice session after my round and I'm excited for tomorrow! Gonna finish strong this time.

Tee Times
Michael will once again be paired with Brandt Jobe and Cameron Tringale.  The group will tee off from the first hole at 7:31am ET .

Video Coverage
As usual, the Memorial will be covered by the Golf Channel from 3pm-6pm ET but in addition to the Golf Channel, the PGATour.com's Live@ streaming coverage will be online from holes #12 and #15.   The Live@ coverage will carry video of each player through those two holes.  If you want to see what the coverage looks like you can view Michael's birdie on hole #15 below.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on ShotTracker
Michael's Group on ShotTracker
 
Video
The following video is a poor representation of what you can see on the PGATour.com's Live@ coverage.  Sorry for the poor quality video and audio but it was taken from my phone (beggars can't be choosers!).

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Thompson Makes First Visit to Jack's Place

by Roz Roberts III

This week, Michael Thompson will be making his first appearance at the Memorial Tournament which is hosted by Jack Nicklaus.  It is an "invitation only" event and is limited to a field of 120.  The tournament is held at the Nicklaus designed Muirfield Village Golf Course in Dublin, Ohio which is often referred to as the "house that Jack built".

Tee Times
Michael will be teeing off from the tenth hole at 12:21pm ET with Brandt Jobe and Cameron Tringale.

Video Coverage
As usual, the Memorial will be covered by the Golf Channel from 3pm-6pm ET but in addition to the Golf Channel, the PGATour.com's Live@ streaming coverage will be online from holes #12 and #15.   The Live@ coverage will carry video of each player through those two holes.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on ShotTracker
Michael's Group on ShotTracker

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Looking Towards the Final Round at Colonial

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson shot one over par in round 3 of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial.  He's T-41 at one over par overall. He ended the day with a double bogey on 18 and it apparently lit a fire under him as he later posted on twitter 
"Time to practice. #notleavingtilitsdark"
 "I absolutely hate playing mediocre golf. I don't care what tour I play on. A crappy day on the course always sucks!"
He held to his word as he posted a photo many hours later.


"Just got done practicing. It's not quite dark but it's close enough."






















Michael tees off at 9:18 local time (7:18 PT) and will be paired with Jason Bohn.

Leaderboard
Scorecard 
Michael ShotTracker
Michael's Group ShotTracker

Thompson Makes The Cut at Colonial

by Randy Roberts

Michael made the cut by finishing the second round at one over par, even par overall.  He got off to a rough +3 start, but fought back on 16 with a 25' birdie putt (the longest of anyone on that hole).  He later followed it up with an eagle on the par 5, 1st hole.

He's back at it tomorrow starting at 10:08 local time (8:08 PT) and he's paired up with Jonas Blixt.

Leaderboard
Scorecard
Michael ShotTracker
Michael's Group ShotTracker

Thursday, May 24, 2012

First Round At Colonial Is In The Books

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson shot one under par today in the first round of the Crowne Plaza Invitational.  He had a great start at -3 after 10 holes, but a double bogey at the 12th hole set him back a little bit.

He tees off at  8:27 am local time (6:27 PT) with JJ Henry and Spencer Levin.

Leaderboard
Scorecard
Michael's ShotTracker
Group ShotTracker

Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial



by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson is set to play in the Crowne Plaza Invitational on Thursday which is taking place at the Colonial Country Club in Ft Worth, Texas.

He'll be teeing off at 1:02 local time with JJ Henry and Spencer Levin.

Leaderboard
Scorecard
Michael's ShotTracker
Group ShotTracker

Monday, May 21, 2012

British Open Qualifier


by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson is in Plano, Texas today competing in the US leg of "International Final Qualifying" for The Open Championship.  It takes place over two rounds and the top 8 players out of the 78 participating will earn a position in the field for the British Open.

Michael has already teed off, and you can follow scores at the link below.

Leaderboard
Scorecard

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Perserverance Pays Off for Thompson After Rough Start

by Roz Roberts III

For Michael Thompson, round three of the Players Championship became a test of patience.  The windy conditions made TPC Sawgrass a difficult test of golf for all of the players on Saturday.  Michael started the round with four bogeys in the first five holes.  However, after the rough start, he managed to grind through the rest of the round and played the remaining 13 holes at one under par.  He finished the round at three over par and is currently in a tie for 34th.

Michael's third round wasn't without its moments of brilliance as he made a 34'9" birdie putt on the eighth hole and he made an eagle at the par five 16th hole.  You can see the eagle putt in the video below.  This was the second eagle Michael has had during the Players after his opening round eagle at hole #11.



 

Tee Times
Michael will tee off the fourth round at 11:15am with Tom Gillis.

Video Coverage 
Golf Channel will have live coverage of round four from 12pm - 2pm ET and NBC will take over as their coverage will run from 2pm - 7pm.  PGATour.com once again will feature exclusive video streaming with their LIVE@ feed featuring coverage of the par three 17th hole.

Live@ Video Feed

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael ShotTracker
Michael's Group on ShotTracker

Friday, May 11, 2012

Thompson Keeps It Rolling

Michael Thompson reacts to his birdie on hole #17 during the second round of the Players Championship

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson followed his four under par first round at the Players Championship with a one under par 71 to propel him into a tie for tenth after 36 holes.  Michael's round was remarkably consistent and his statistics show evidence of that.  He hit 13 of 14 fairways (T2 in driving accuracy) and was +2.744 in strokes gained putting (4th).    He managed three birdies on the day including one on hole #17 when he sank a 43 foot putt, the longest of anyone on that hole.





Round Three Tee Time
For the third round, Michael will be paired with Blake Adams.  They will tee off at 1:29pm ET.

Video Coverage 
Golf Channel will have live coverage of round three from 12pm - 2pm ET.  NBC will come on the air at 2pm ET and their coverage will run to 7pm ET.  PGATour.com once again will feature exclusive video streaming with their LIVE@ feed featuring coverage of the par three 17th hole.

Live@ Video Feed

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael ShotTracker
Michael's Group on ShotTracker

Thompson Continues to 'Drop Bombs'

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson continued play near the top of the leaderboard at the Players Championship during the second round where he ended the day in a tie for tenth.  Here's one of his 'shots of the day' as he birdied the famed island green (hole #17).


Thursday, May 10, 2012

Thompson Has 'Pretty Darn Good' First Round

by Roz Roberts III

When he was asked how his first round at the Players went, Michael Thompson laughed and replied "pretty darn good!"  For his first competitive round at the unofficial "fifth major", Michael shot a four under par 68 which left him in a tie for sixth after 18 holes.  His round was highlighted by a five hole stretch in which he was five under par including an eagle on the par five eleventh hole.  The eagle was setup by a 265 yard second shot with a three wood that came to rest a mere 12 feet 7 inches from the hole.

Round Two Tee Time
For the second round, Michael will once again be paired with Pat Perez and Briny Baird.   They will tee off from the tenth hole at 12:46pm ET.

Video Coverage 
Golf Channel will have live coverage of round two from 1pm - 7pm ET.  If you want a guaranteed Michael Thompson video sighting during the second round you can stream the PGAtour.com's Live@ feed from the 13th and 17th holes.  They cover every player through those holes from 9am-7pm ET tomorrow.

Live@ Video Feed

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael ShotTracker
Group ShotTracker


Thompson Interviewed After Round One at the Players Championship

After Michael Thompson shot a solid four under par 68 during the first round of the Players Championship, he met with the media.  Here's what he had to say:


Wednesday, May 9, 2012

The Players Championship



Michael Thompson will be playing in The Players Championship tomorrow, often referred to as the "Fifth Major" due to it's prestige and large purse.  $9.5 Million will be handed out sunday, and every member of the  144 person field will be gunning after the title.

The Players takes place at TPC Sawgrass and is the only tournament owned and run by the PGA.  It lies claim to the most famous hole in golf, the par 3 17th which features an island green.

Michael will be teeing off at 7:36 am ET with Briny Baird and Pat Perez.

Take a 3D Tour of TPC Sawgrass
Leaderboard
Michael ShotTracker
Group ShotTracker

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Par 3's End Wells Fargo Championship Early for Thompson

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson struggled with the par threes at the Quail Hollow Club during the second round of the Wells Fargo Championship on Friday and missed the cut by two shots.  It was just Michael's fourth missed cut of the year.  During the second round Michael was five over par on par three's.  He tried to come back late in the round as he birdied two of his last three holes but his two over par 74 left him two shots outside the cut that fell at -1.

Next week, Michael will be teeing it up at the Players Championship for the first time.  He will get a chance to play the most famous par three in all of golf as he faces TPC Sawgrass's famous seventeenth hole island green.  

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Wells Fargo Championship


by Randy Roberts


Having had a full two week break, Michael Thompson returns to the PGA Tour tomorrow at the Wells Fargo Championship which is taking place at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.

He'll be teeing off at 12:45 ET with JJ Henry and Cameron Tringale.

Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael's ShotTracker - Round 1
Michael's ShotTracker - Round 2
Group ShotTracker-Round 1
Group ShotTracker-Round 2

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Thompson's First Half of Season Shows Marked Improvement

by Roz Roberts III

As the PGA Tour season reaches the half-way point, this is a good point to reflect on just how far Michael Thompson has come in a year.    Last year at this time Michael was ranked #723 in the world (using the OWGR) and this year he is ranked #92.  In 2011, he had made just four of nine cuts and his best finish was a T16 in Puerto Rico.  This year, Michael has made eight of eleven cuts and has had one T6, one T16, and one T17.

PGATour.com has come up with a list of the "Biggest Improvements on Tour" and Michael made two of the lists in the article.  On the Fedex Cup points list he's moved up 99 spots from 165th last year to 66th this year and on the scoring average list he's moved up 76 spots from 106th to 30th.

Based on his improved status, Michael will get a chance to play in some of the bigger events during the second half of the season starting next week with the Players Championship. It should be an exciting few months for all of us Michael Thompson fans!