'Michael Thompson Golf' on Display at the Cadillac Championship

by Roz Roberts III

Three weeks ago, Michael Thompson finished dead last at the Northern Trust Open and was looking for answers as to why.  I was at that second round at Riviera when Michael shot an 80 and despite the high score, there were some signs of things to come.  He eagled the first hole with a 49 foot putt and made a fantastic chip on the tricky tenth hole which lead to a birdie.  The problem was more a matter of consistency.

Michael went back home to Birmingham, AL with a week off and spent the time trying to find his game "in the dirt".  He played golf with the Alabama men's golf team and talked with his past and present coaches.  He learned to enjoy what he was doing again.  His wife Rachel describes the process in her latest blog.  If you haven't read it - you should.

What Michael found was "Michael Thompson golf" - nothing more, nothing less.  It's all about doing what Michael does best.  Get onto the green as fast as possible.  Putt well.  Grind.  And, most importantly, never give up.

Last week, as you all know by now, Michael won his first tournament on the PGA Tour at the Honda Classic.  As a byproduct of that win, he got into this week's WGC Cadillac Championship where he finished in a tie for 8th.  It is the first time in Michael's young PGA career that he has posted back to back top 10 finishes.  And what top 10 finishes they are.  Both events had stellar fields.  In fact, the Cadillac had all golfers inside the top 50 in Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) except for Brandt Snedeker who is healing from an injury.

Michael entered the final round in a tie for 5th.  His final round started with 10 straight pars.  Michael had his birdie chances but, today, those putts just weren't falling.  Michael hit a rough patch when he bogeyed holes 11 and 12 to fall to two over par for the round.  He then managed to make back to back birdies on holes 15 and 16 to get back to even par on the day. He eventually bogeyed the 18th hole (the hardest on the course) after missing a 15 foot putt from the fringe by a mere six inches.  Had the putt fallen he would have finished solo 8th rather than tied for 8th, but in the end, he had a solid top 10 finish in a high profile WGC event.

The T8 finish ensures that Michael remains at the 11th spot on both the Fedex Cup points list and the money list.  It should also move him up a few notches in the OWGR list.

This coming week, Michael will look to carry his good form into the Tampa Bay Championship at Copperhead course at the Innisbrook Resort.  It's a course that Michael likes and feels fits his game.  Based on his current form and current attitude, the future looks bright.

Videos
Michael's Birdie on Hole #16 During the Fourth Round of the WGC Cadillac Championship

Thompson's Clubs 'Saying a Lot of Good Stuff'

Michael Thompson watches his third shot at the par 5 tenth hole.  The ball would find the bottom of the cup for eagle and propel Michael into a tie for 5th at the WGC Cadillac Championship.

by Roz Roberts III

All Michael Thompson has done after winning the Honda Classic is to shoot three rounds in the 60's and move up the leaderboard into a tie for 5th.  Michael made the most of "moving day" by posting one of the low rounds of the day at five under par (67) which has him at -11 for the tournament and tied for 5th.  Most of the talking heads said that Michael's win at Honda was "out of the blue" put the same can't be said of his top notch performance at the WGC Cadillac Championship.

Michael's performance is being overshadowed by Tiger Woods who is in the lead at -18 and posting a record number of birdies but that's pretty much the way Michael likes it.  After his win at the Honda, Michael said

Everybody wants to see the marquis players, the guys who are exciting or wear the bright clothes and all that.  I've always kind of treated my golf game or kind of lived by the motto as, I'm going to let my clubs do the talking.  If my clubs talk, and they are saying a lot of good stuff, then good things are going to happen to me. 

Right now, his clubs are, in fact, 'saying a lot of good stuff'.  During Saturday's third round Michael posted four birdies and an eagle (see the video below) and limited his mistakes with only a single bogey on the card. Michael had two hole outs during the round.  In addition to the bunker shot on hole #10, he had a chip in from just off the green on hole #17 which got him to -5 on the day.

Fourth Round Tee Time
Michael will once again be paired with Sergio Garcia.  They tee off at 2:20pm ET.

TV Times

Golf Channel         1:00-3:00pm ET

NBC                        3:00-7:00 ET
Golf Channel         3:00-6:00pm ET (spotlight coverage of holes 15, 16, and 18)

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

Articles

Thompson gets kicks two weeks in a row

Videos
Michael's Eagle on hole #10
Michael participated in the Cadillac V-Series Challenge for Charity prior to the WGC Cadillac Championship

Thompson Not Backing Down

Michael Thompson hits his second shot on hole #17 during the second round of the WGC Cadillac Championship

by Roz Roberts III and Randy Roberts


Undaunted by the elite golfers surrounding him on the leaderboard, Michael Thompson posted another three under par 69 at the WGC Cadillac Championship and is now tied for 10th after two rounds.  He is 7 shots back from Tiger Woods who leads the field.  Michael climbed the leaderboard Friday by hitting fairways (11 out of 14 which was tied for 4th) and greens in regulation (14 out of 18 which was tied for 9th).  He is currently tied for 3rd in driving accuracy for the tournament hitting 20 out of 28 fairways.


He'll be looking to keep his current rush of momentum going in the third round on Saturday.

Third Round Tee Time
Michael will be paired with Sergio Garcia and tees off at 12:45pm ET.

TV Times
Golf Channel 12:00-2:00pm ET
NBC 2:00-6:00 ET

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

Thompson Still On Fire

Michael Thompson putts for birdie on hole #9 at the Blue Monster at Doral.

by Roz Roberts III

Nobody would have been surprised if Michael Thompson's first round at the WGC Cadillac Championship wasn't spectacular.  After all, he's had press interviews all week with radio stations, televisions shows, and newspaper reporters after his victory at the Honda Classic.  All of that to say, it hasn't been a normal week of preparation.  In fact, as of his PGA Tour press conference on Wednesday at noon, Michael had only been able to practice the first nine holes of the Blue Monster at Doral once!  He was hoping to get to practice the back nine on Wednesday afternoon.

Lack of practice or not, Michael had a great first round at Doral shooting a three under par 69 which has him tied for 16th.  He had four birdies on the day and only one bogey.  He continued his top form from last week by hitting 9 out 14 fairways and 12 out of 18 greens in regulation.  He also was +1.835 in strokes gained putting.  The three under par round leaves him just three shots from the top of the leaderboard.

Second Round Tee Time
Michael will once again be paired with Chris Wood and Stephen Gallacher.  They tee off from the first hole at 12:04pm ET.

TV Times
Golf Channel 2-6pm ET

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

Articles and Interviews
Michael Thompson: Learning to Be True to Himself - This is a good article based on Michael's Wednesday press conference
Radio Interview with Tampa Bay Sports Radio 620
Full Text from Michael's Wednesday Press Conference

First WGC For Thompson

by Roz Roberts III

Just four days after his first PGA Tour victory, and as a direct result of his increased Official World Golf Ranking, Michael Thompson will look to carry his momentum into the Cadillac Championship.  This will be the first time he will compete in a World Golf Championship (WGC) event.

The Cadillac Championship is the second of four WGC events held throughout the year.  These events were created to combine players from the various tours around the world and are generally limited to the top 50-70 players in the world.  Michael qualified when his OWGR jumped to #45 and inside the top 50.  The WGC events are "no-cut" events so the entire field will play all four rounds.

The Cadillac Championship is played at the TPC Blue Monster at Trump Doral which boasts one of the most feared 18th holes in golf - especially if the wind is blowing into the players' faces.  The long par four boasts water on the left, bunkers on the right, and a very narrow landing zone off the tee.  The second shot is just as daunting as water is still on the play on the left and the long-narrow green is guarded by bunkers.

First Round Tee Time
Michael will be paired with Chris Wood and Stephen Gallacher for the first two rounds.  The group will tee off their first round from the 10th hole at 12:59pm ET.

TV Times
Golf Channel 2-6pm ET

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

Michael Interview Snippet from Wednesday