Thompson Excels While Most Struggle at Honda Classic

Michael Thompson lines up a putt on the 14th green during the first round of The Honda Classic at PGA National Resort & Spa - Champion Course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (February 26, 2015 - Source: David Cannon/Getty Images North America)

by Roz Roberts III

The PGA National Champion Course is known as a difficult course under the best of circumstances.  Add 35mph wind gusts and it can be downright diabolical.  The first round of the 2015 Honda Classic challenged the best golfers in the world and only 19 players managed to break par.  The average score was more than two and a half shots over par.

Michael Thompson played a fantastic first round and finished at one under par which has him tied for 13th heading into tomorrow's second round.  Michael hit 9 out of 14 fairways and 13 out of 18 greens in regulation

Michael and playing partners Stewart Cink and Ian Poulter tee off from the first hole Friday at 12:25pm ET.

Michael Thompson plays his tee shot on the 15th hole during the first round of The Honda Classic at PGA National Resort & Spa - Champion Course on February 26, 2015 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (February 25, 2015 - Source: David Cannon/Getty Images North America)

Michael Thompson reacts to his birdie putt on the 14th hole during the first round of The Honda Classic at PGA National Resort & Spa - Champion Course on February 26, 2015 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (February 26, 2015 - Source: David Cannon/Getty Images North America)

Video Highlights from Round 1


Michael Thompson sinks a 17-foot birdie putt on the par-4 14th hole.


Michael Thompson hits his 36-yard pitch shot on the par-4 10th hole to 5 feet to get up and down for par.




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Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming of Holes 13 and 15

Thompson Back at the Honda Classic

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson is back at a tournament he knows well - the Honda Classic.  It's the site of his first PGA Tour victory back in 2012,  The Jack Nicklaus designed PGA National Champion Course is known for its three hole stretch known as the Bear Trap and is considered the most difficult course in Florida.  

Michael will be playing with Ian Poulter and Stewart Cink.  They tee off Thursday morning at 7:25am ET from the tenth hole.

Golfweek Article You Should Read
Wednesday Afternoon Michael was Practicing...Juggling


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Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Riviera is No Vacation

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson shot three over par and is tied for 85th after the first round of the Northern Trust Open. He had what I would consider one of the "Most Colorful" scorecards of the day, with only 7 pars, four of which all came at the end of his round.

He'll be teeing off for round two at 7:43 PST with Woody Austin and Ken Duke.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Full Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from 10th hole

Thompson Takes Aim at Riviera

photo by caddie Matt Hughes @matthughes 

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson's west coast swing heads back to Southern California to the Riviera Country Club. This will be the third time he's played in the Northern Trust Open (T17 2012, MC 2013)

He'll be teeing off at 12:23 PST with Woody Austin and Ken Duke.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Full Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from 10th hole

Interesting Tidbit:
Michael had a mention in an article about Nick Saban and Alabama golf coach Jay Seawell.
Saban, 'Bama Golf Coach Bond Through Love of Links, Titles

One Birdie Not Enough For a Parade

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson's birdie parade failed to materialize Friday on the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula Country Club. Four bogeys were offset by a lone birdie, which dropped him down to T-109. He'll be looking to gain back some momentum and make the cut today at the third golf course of the week: Spyglass Hill Golf Club. He tees off at 9:39 am with Jason Day.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Full Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from the 10th hole

Thompson's Birdie Parade Continues at Pebble Beach

by Roz Roberts III


In his final round at Torrey Pines last week, Michael Thompson carded seven birdies.  Today at Pebble Beach, Michael continued the birdie barrage as he had another eight birdies during the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am.  He finished the round at four under par and he is currently tied for 26th.

Michael's round wasn't without its difficulties.  He had four bogeys on his card including one on the 18th hole after his first drive went left into the Pacific Ocean.  He had to re-tee and went left again.  This time, playing partner Jason Day found Michael's ball on the rocky beach.  Michael managed to save his bogey by dropping a 25 foot putt.

Michael Thompson hits his third shot from the beach on the 18th hole of Pebble Beach.  Photo posted by Golf Central on Twitter.

Michael's putting was definitely the strongest part of his round.  He was +2.478 in strokes gained putting which is currently second.  He made puts of 19'2", 22'8", 25'2", and 28'10".  Since Shot Tracker is only available at Pebble Beach, the stokes gained stats are only relative to players at Pebble Beach.

Michael also chipped in from 12 yards on hole #13.

The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am is played on three separate courses.  Michael, Jason Day, and their amateur partners will move on the Shore Course at the Monterey Peninsula Country Club.  They will tee off on Friday at 8:11am PT.  On Saturday they will move on to the most difficult of the three courses: Spyglass Hill.





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Michael's Full Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Thompson Playing Pebble Beach Tomorrow

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson and the rest of the PGA Tour have moved up the California coast to the beautiful piece of coast line between Monterey and Carmel.  This week the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am will be held on three iconic golf courses:  Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill, and the Monterey Peninsula Country Club's Shore Course.

Michael is paired with Jason Day and they will be playing with a couple of amateurs from the business world.  They get their first round underway at Pebble Beach starting at 8:55am PT on the first hole.  Look for longer rounds than normal since they are playing in foursomes and each group has two amateurs in them.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Full Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Seven Birdies in the Final Round Give Thompson Best Finish of the Year

Michael Thompson plays a shot out of the bunker on the fourth hole during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on February 8, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 7, 2015 - Source: Josh Hedges/Getty Images North America)

by Roz Roberts III

It was an eventful final round at the Farmers Insurance Open for Michael Thompson.  He carded a remarkable seven birdies under difficult breezy conditions Sunday afternoon.  They were balanced by five bogeys but ultimately his two under par 70 was tied for the seventh best round of the day.  It moved him to six under par for the tournament which was good enough for a T11.  It was by far Michael's best finish of the young 2014-2015 PGA Tour season.

For the second straight day, Michael took advantage of the four par 5's at Torrey Pines South.  He birdied all four of them on Sunday.  The strong finish moved Michael up to 121st on the money list and 145th on the FedexCup points list.

This week he moves up the coast to the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on the beautiful Monterrey Peninsula in central California.

Michael Thompson plays his tee shot on the sixth hole during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on February 8, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 7, 2015 - Source: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images North America) 

Michael Thompson and his caddie Matt Hughes wait on the fifth hole of Torrey Pines South  during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open.

Michael Thompson hits his third shot on the par 5 9th hole on Torrey Pines South during the fourth round of the Farmers Insurance Open.  He would end up birding the hole after his chip game to rest 7'6" form the hole.

Thompson Takes Advantage of Par 5's on Torrey South

Michael Thompson plays his tee shot on the second hole during the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on February 7, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 6, 2015 - Source: Todd Warshaw/Getty Images North America)

by Roz Roberts III

During Saturday's third round at the Farmers Insurance Open, Michael Thompson struggled on the par fours on the Torrey Pines South course but was superb on the par fives.  He finished the round at two over par and is currently tied for 21st.

On the day, Michael was six over par on the par fours which included a double bogey on the forth hole when he drove the ball left into the native scrub brush and had to take an unplayable lie penalty.  But while he struggled on the par fours, he excelled on the par fives.  He was four under par on the four par fives after making two birdies and an eagle.  His eagle came on his final hole of the day when his second shot from 260 yards came to rest a mere four feet 10 inches from the hole.




For Sunday's final round, Michael will be playing with with Brendon De Jonge and Jamie Donaldson.  They tee off from the first hole at 8:50am PT.

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Michael Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from the 13th and 16th Holes

Michael tees off from the first hole in the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open

Patience the Key to Thompson's Second Round

Michael Thompson prepares to play his tee shot on the 11th hole of the south course during round two of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course on February 6, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 5, 2015 - Source: Josh Hedges/Getty Images North America)

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson fought his way through the South Course at Torrey Pines in the second round of the Farmers Insurance Open finishing his round at one over par.  He is six under par for the tournament and tied for sixth.

His round got off to a slow start after he had back to back bogeys on his second and third holes of the day.  The South Course at Torrey Pines is one of the most difficult and tour because of its length and penal rough.  Michael's dropped shots were the result of missing greens and fairways.

After his back to back bogeys Michael ground out seven straight pars including a nice par save on 17.  He then missed the green on hole number two which lead to a bogey and he followed that with another bogey on the par three third hole after missing the green to the left.  At that point Michael was sitting at four over par for the round.  He didn't panic but instead continued playing calm and steady.

He then had his best stretch of the day when he parred the forth hole and then ripped off three consecutive birdies.  He birdied the fifth hole after a perfect drive and approach that left him inside a foot for a tap in birdie.  He then birdied the par five sixth hole.  His drive on the seventh hole missed the fairway far to the left.  It was the first (and only) time Michael had been outside the ropes in the first two rounds.  He got a free drop to move away from a temporary structure and then hit an amazing recovery shot to 3 feet 8 inches.  He went on to par his remaining two holes.

Michael birdies hole #6.  His second of three consecutive birdies.

Michael will be paired with Spencer Levin and Marc Leishman for Saturday's third round.  They are scheduled to tee off at 9:30 PT.  However both of the first two rounds were delayed due to early morning fog.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from the 13th and 16th Holes

Michael Thompson lines up a putt on the 13th green on the south course during round two of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course on February 6, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 5, 2015 - Source: Josh Hedges/Getty Images North America) 

Michael Thompson plays his tee shot on the 14th hole of the south course during round two of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course on February 6, 2015 in La Jolla, California.  (February 5, 2015 - Source: Josh Hedges/Getty Images North America) 

Michael Thompson tees off from the fourth hole on the South Course at Torrey Pines.

Michael reads his putt on hole #2

Torrey Pines Tidbit of the Day

by Roz Roberts III

Due to a two an a half hour fog delay earlier in the day, Michael Thompson and his group were 16 holes through their round when it really started to get dark.  Late afternoon fog wasn't helping either.  They played the short par three 17th hole and quickly moved to the 18th hole tee box.

A course official came up to Michael and his group (J.B Holmes and John Merrick) and asked them if they wanted to start the 18th before he blew the horn signaling the halting of play for darkness.  All three players indicated they wanted to finish.

Since Michael had just birdied the 17th hole he had the honor of teeing off.  He hit his tee shot and then the official blew the horn.  Since a member of the group had hit their tee shot, the entire group had the option of finishing play on that hole which is exactly what they did.

In very low light, all three players went on to birdie the par five 18th and finish their rounds.   A nice win-win to end the day.

Thompson Tears Up Torrey Pines North

Michael Thompson hits his tee shot from the second tee during round one of the Farmers Insurance Open on the North Course at Torrey Pines.

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson's first competitive round at Torrey Pines in a while was very successful.  The day started off slowly with two fog delays which moved his first round tee time at the Farmers Insurance Open by two and a half hours.  Despite the delay, Michael started fast out of the gate making birdies on his first two holes on the Torrey Pines North Course.

Michael jumped out to a fast start making birdies at the first two holes.

Over the course of the day, he poured in eight birdies and had decent birdie opportunities on all but three or four holes.  He shot seven under par which has him in second place with roughly 40 golfers still on the course needing to finish their first rounds.

Michael's tee shot on hole #5.

Despite scoring well, Michael's driver was slightly off, especially early in the day.  He didn't hit a fairway until the fifth hole but he was often just feet off the fairway.  His approaches out of the rough were superb all day and missed fairways didn't cost him at all.  In fact, his lone bogey came when a short par putt lipped out on the par three third hole.   As the day wore one, his driver started to find the fairways more regularly.

 

Michael and caddie Matt Hughes contemplate the second shot on hole #8.

He putted solidly all day and dropped lengthy birdie putts on hole 5 (~12 feet) and 17 (~20 feet).  The Poa Annua greens got more and more bumpy as the day went on as the grass grew but the difficult conditions didn't appear to bother Michael.

Michael's approach shot on hole #9 landed 6 inches from the hole setting up a tap in birdie.

Michael hits his tee shot on hole #15

Michael will be playing the South Course at Torrey Pines for Friday's second round.  He will once again be paired with John Merrick and J.B. Holmes.  They are scheduled to tee off from the tenth hole at 9am PT but fog delays remain a possibility.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker (no Shot Tracker Data Available from the North Course)
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker
Live@ Streaming from the 13th and 16th Holes

Thompson Back at Torrey Pines for Farmers Insurance Open

by Roz Roberts III.

It's been a couple of years since Michael Thompson has competed at Torrey Pines but he is back in San Diego for this year's Farmers Insurance Open.  He got a light bit of practice Wednesday in preparation for Thursday's first round.

Michael will tee off from hole #1 of the North Course with John Merrick and J.B. Holmes on Thursday at 10:30am PT.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker (no Shot Tracker Data Available from the North Course)
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

WMPO Wraps Up Super Bowl Sunday

Michael Thompson watches his birdie putt on hole #16 during round three of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Micahel Thompson will be playing in the Waste Management Phoenix Open's final round today.  He is currently tied for 59th at even par.

He is paired with Nick Taylor and Ricky Barnes.  They tee off from the tenth hole at 10:15am local Phoenix time.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Live@ Streaming