Thursday, June 25, 2020

Thompson Keeps Rolling

Michael Thompson watches his third shot on hole #10 at the Travelers Championship.

Roz Roberts III

For the second week in a row, Michael Thompson has opened a PGA Tour event with a bogey free six under par round.  This week it came at the Travelers Championship where his sparkling opening round has him tied for fifth heading into Friday's second round.

Much like last week, Michael used a strong iron and wedge game in combination with strong putting to move up the leaderboard.

Michael and playing partners Russell Henley and Sepp Straka tee off from the first hole at 12:10pm ET.


Embed from Getty Images CROMWELL, CONNECTICUT - JUNE 25: Michael Thompson of the United States plays his shot from the seventh tee during the first round of the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands on June 25, 2020 in Cromwell, Connecticut. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael PGA TourCast 3D

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

PGA Tour Travels Up to the Travelers


by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson enters this week's Travelers Championship on the heels of his first top ten finish of the 2019/2020 season (he finished tied for 8th in last week's RBC Heritage).  Michael will look to keep that momentum rolling at a course and a tournament that he's had some success at.  In fact, in 2011, Michael shot his career low round on the PGA Tour when he shot a final round 62.

The Travelers is played at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut and the par 70 plays relatively short at 6,841 yards.  The course is known for giving up some good scoring including the lowest score in PGA Tour History when Jim Furyk shot a 58 in the final round of the 2016 edition.

Michael will be grouped with Russell Henley and Sepp Straka.  They tee off from the tenth hole at 6:55am ET.


PGA TourCast 3D
On a completely separate note....If you haven't tried the PGA Tour's TourCast 3D yet - you should.  It is available in both the PGA Tour phone app and via the leaderboard on the website (see image below to find it from the leaderboard player view).. You can also just click on the picture below or use the link provided in the "Online Links" section.  It presents a nice 3D version of the old ShotTracker and it updates faster than the leaderboard.   It also allows you to zoom in or out, rotate the view and see what a particular shot looks like.  It also includes radar data for shots that include things like club head speed, ball spin rate and highest point reached.  If a shot is captured on video it will even show the video in a small picture-in-picture window.





Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael via TourCast 3D


Saturday, June 20, 2020

Strong Finish Has Thompson T-8

Embed from Getty Images
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA - JUNE 20: Michael Thompson of the United States reacts on the 18th green during the third round of the RBC Heritage on June 20, 2020 at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)


by Roz Roberts III

A strong birdie-birdie finish has Michael Thompson tied for 8th heading into Sunday's final round of the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Michael is 13 under par for the tournament and two shots off the lead.

Michael's third round got off to a rough start with a bogey at the first hole but he quickly righted things with back-to-back birdies on holes 2 and 3 and never looked back.  Michael shot a five under par (66) in the third round notching six birdies against that sole bogey on the opening hole.

Michael will be paired with Erik van Rooyen in Sunday's final round.  They tee off at 1:20PM ET.



Video

Michael Thompson birdies No. 17 in Round 3 at RBC Heritage In the third round of the 2020 RBC Heritage,




Photos

Embed from Getty Images
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA - JUNE 20: Michael Thompson of the United States bumps elbows with Ernie Els of South Africa on the 18th green during the third round of the RBC Heritage on June 20, 2020 at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

  Embed from Getty Images
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA - JUNE 20: Michael Thompson of the United States putts on the 18th green during the third round of the RBC Heritage on June 20, 2020 at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) 

  
Embed from Getty Images
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA - JUNE 20: Michael Thompson of the United States reacts on the 18th green during the third round of the RBC Heritage on June 20, 2020 at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

  Embed from Getty Images
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA - JUNE 20: Michael Thompson of the United States reacts on the 18th green during the third round of the RBC Heritage on June 20, 2020 at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)


Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on PGA TourCast 3D (Won't be active until round 4 starts)

Thursday, June 18, 2020

How Great Is It To See M. Thompson Near the Top of the Leaderboard Again?

Embed from Getty Images

by Roz Roberts III

It's been a while since we've seen competitive golf but it's been even longer since Michael Thompson's name has been near the top of a PGA Tour leaderboard and I sort of forgot just how great it is to see that.  I'll admit it, I like it when his name is on the top page of the leaderboard when Golf Channel goes to commercial.  I can't help it.  It's fun.  It's exciting.  It makes me happy.  And I'm not going to apologize so deal with it.

Michael had a spectacular, six under par, 65 during the first round of the RBC Heritage and is currently tied for third, one shot off the lead.  Michael was bogey free and if you've followed his career, you won't be surprised to hear that Michael did most of his damage with the putter.  He was over +3.4 in strokes gained putting.  His iron and wedge games were also strong as he finished over +1.8 in strokes gained approach to the green.

Michael will once again be grouped with  Matt Wallace and Roger Sloan for Friday's second round.  They tee off from the first hole at 2:11pm ET.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard

Thompson and the PGA Tour Return to Hilton Head


by Roz Roberts III

This week's RBC Heritage will be the first PGA Tour event Michael Thompson will compete in since the Players Championship was halted after the first round earlier this year.  The RBC Heritage will be played without spectators but it will have full ShoitTrack support for following the tournament online.

The RBC Heritage is played at the Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head, SC.  The course was designed by Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus and features small greens and necessitates shaping shots.

Michael is grouped with  Matt Wallace and Roger Sloan.  They tee off from the tenth hole at 8:48am ET.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael's Group in 3D PGA TourCast View Hole 10

Thursday, June 11, 2020

Golf Is Back This Week



by Roz Roberts III

After a three month pandemic induced hiatus, professional golf in the United States will tee off this week.  Michael Thompson will get back to action in a Korn Ferry event in Florida.  He will be playing in the Korn Ferry Challenge at TPC Sawgrass which will be played on the Pete Dye designed Valley Course at TPC Sawgrass in Jacksonville Florida.

The tournament will be sure to be different since no spectators will be allowed based on the current federal and local health guidelines.

The Valley Course, like most Dye courses,, features a variety of  water hazards, strategically-placed bunkers and deceptive angles that force players to concentrate for the entire round. The course will play as a par-70 and measures 6,847 yard.  Holes 8 and 17 are par-4's for member and guest play but will be converted to par-5's for this week’s tournament.  The course should be soft after early week rain but it's inherent difficulty will keep this tournament from run away scoring.

Michael will be grouped with Brian Campbell and Will Zalatoris.  The group will tee off on Thursday at 1:47pm ET from the 10th hole.

Online Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard