Wild winds make surviving the only goal Friday at Shriners Children’s Open

LAS VEGAS – All bets were off Friday morning at the Shriners Children’s Open as wind ripped through TPC Summerlin and made conditions as dicey as the Las Vegas craps tables. Gusts peaked over 50 mph, delaying the start of play by four hours.

Once the proceedings finally began at the fourth event of the FedExCup Fall, the few who completed their second round were more than happy to come in anywhere under par.

“I felt like I shot 62 today to be honest, and I only shot 2-under,” said Greyson Sigg, who was in the first tee time of the day. “Man, it was blowing from the first shot of the day and all the way to the end. It was a mental test out there today and I did a pretty good job of that.”

TPC Summerlin played roughly 3.5 shots harder Friday than Thursday’s opening round, with those in the late-early tee time group suffering the worst the desert gales had to offer. Fans weren’t allowed on-site, flagsticks bent under the forceful winds, players backed off shots with regularity and their hats flew off as they dealt with the unseasonably strong gusts. A day after Taylor Pendrith shot 61 and 22 others shot 65 or better, Pierceson Coody was the only golfer to card a 65 or better. It was not a day to thrive. The only goal was to survive.

One of those who performed admirably under the conditions was Las Vegas resident Doug Ghim, who navigated the gusts to a 1-under 70 to put himself at 8-under midway through the tournament, in a tie for third when play was suspended just after 6 p.m. local time.

“It was a test of patience,” said the 28-year-old following his round. “It usually is when it gets that windy. You know that if you shoot something under par you're not going to lose a lot of ground and hopefully gain some.”

Ghim opened the week with a 64 in very familiar confines; TPC Summerlin is his home course. But the Texas alum put up six birdies against five bogeys on a day that reminded players less of playing in the desert, and more of playing in Scotland or Ireland.

“It kind of shifts the attention a little bit less to making as many birdies,” Ghim said. “Obviously was blessed enough to make a fair share to cover some of the mistakes I made. For the most part, yeah, definitely felt a little bit more like Scotland than it did Vegas.”

The contingent of players with Las Vegas ties had mixed results through the second round. Vegas residents like Ghim and Kurt Kitayama all find themselves in striking distance of the lead, with Kitayama posting a bogey-free 68 Friday. UNLV grad and Englishman Harry Hall didn’t complete his round Friday but liked his changes given the conditions.

“I played the Irish Open a bit ago and it was blowing 30-40 (mph) so hopefully this is right up my alley,” Hall told PGATOUR.COM ahead of his round. Hall earned his first PGA TOUR title this season in a five-man playoff at the ISCO Championship. He was 7-under, even on the day through five holes when play stopped.

Others fared worse. Playing in the intense wind affects every part of the game, including putting, where finding your balance over the ball suddenly becomes more difficult than hitting a hard 16 with the dealer showing 10.

Joseph Bramlett, another player sleeping in his own bed this week, experienced this firsthand. Despite knowing the greens well, Bramlett five-putted from 10 feet on the first hole, his 10th of the day, walking away with a triple bogey.

Bramlett posted a 64 on Thursday but slipped to a 74 amongst Friday’s turbulence to sit just inside the cutline at 3-under. The same can’t be said for two-time defending champion Tom Kim, who finished at 1-under, unable to recover from a triple on the 17th hole. Carl Yuan, after shooting 72 in the first round, shot 82 on Friday. Cam Davis and Stephan Jaeger shot 78.

With half the field still working on their second round as the sun set behind the mountains in Nevada, including leader Taylor Pendrith at 10-under overall, the cutline remains undetermined. For those who battled their way through Friday’s conditions to a low number, they head to the weekend feeling like they played their cards right.