PINEHURST, N.C. – Sepp Straka got his revenge on Pinehurst No. 2 on Friday morning.
Straka carded a triple bogey at the par-4 third hole after his wedge shot hit the flagstick, but six holes later he jarred his tee ball at the par-3 ninth for a hole-in-one.
At the third, Straka left himself just 139 yards to the flag. He appeared to initially stuff the wedge from the fairway, but it was too stuffed, Straka’s ball clanking off the stick and getting knocked back into a bunker. From there, Straka splashed out over the green and then couldn’t quite get his fourth shot up on the putting surface. He misjudged his fifth in which Straka’s ball caught a slope and ended up just off the green again, this time about 20 feet left of the hole.
He needed two putts from there to card his ‘8.’
Straka’s 2-over 37 also included a birdie at No. 5 sandwiched between two bogeys while Straka turned in 2 over, just inside the cut line that surely will climb. On the front, Straka made scores of 8, 5, 4 and the 1 he recorded by holing out from 194 yards for the ace.