12/20/25 05:09:00
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12/20 17:08 CST Matt Kuchar team leads by 2 over John Daly in PNC. Their sons
carried the load
Matt Kuchar team leads by 2 over John Daly in PNC. Their sons carried the load
By DOUG FERGUSON
AP Golf Writer
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) --- Matt Kuchar and his college-bound son made birdie on all
but three holes for a 15-under 57 to build a two-shot lead over John Daly and
his college son in the PNC Championship on a gorgeous Saturday when both sons
carried the load in a scramble format.
"He's the horse and the saddle. That's all there is to it," Daly, the two-time
major champion, said of John Daly II, the Southern Amateur champion and a
senior at Arkansas.
Cameron Kuchar, who is going to TCU next year, drilled a driver and hit wedge
to a foot on the first hole for birdie. Kuchar followed with a drive, wedge and
a putt for birdie on the next. That's when Cameron got the idea to keep track
of "solo birdies" made on their own shots.
"He ran a tally up. It was way higher than my tally of solo birdies," Kuchar
said of his son. "He got the best of my today."
The game within a game --- Cameron won --- carried them to the low score at the
Ritz-Carlton Club and a chance to win the Willie Park Trophy, a red belt that
goes to the winning team.
The only glitch was the par-5 14th hole with water running down the left side.
Both were in the fairway. Both hit into the water. They had to scramble for
par, which in this format felt like a bogey.
"You do feel a bit deflated walking away from a par particularly after the
drive he hit," Kuchar said. "Best thing you can do is just get right back on
it, and Cam did that on the next."
The tournament is popular among players who have won majors of The Players
Championship and bring one of their children or a parent. Former U.S. Open
champion Gary Woodland was the lone newcomer among 20 teams. He is recovering
from brain surgery in September 2023 and his father, Dan, is a cancer survivor.
They shot 61.
The final round Sunday also is the scramble format, when each team hits from
the best ball, so it will be a sprint to the finish with several teams still in
the mix, two of them women.
Steve Stricker and daughter Izzi, a sophomore at Wisconsin, were at 12-under 60
along with two-time LPGA major champion Nelly Korda and her father, former
Australian Open tennis champion Petr Korda.
Also at 60 was Davis Love III and Davis Love IV --- he goes by Dru --- who won
this twice in 2012 and 2018. Dru Love had an Asian Tour card which kept him
from playing the PNC, but he no longer has a card on any tour and the Loves
were late entries when a number of players --- Tiger Woods, Justin Thomas and
Gary Player --- were kept from playing because of injury or health issues.
Daly and Little John also are past champions, beating Woods and his son Charlie
in 2021. The son delivered the goods on the par-5 closing hole with an 8-iron
from 190 yards to 10 feet.
Annika Sorenstam and her son, Will McGee, were in the group at 11-under 61 that
included the Woodlands and Justin Leonard and his college son Luke (Villanova).
David Duval and his son also were at 61 along with two-time defending
champions, Bernhard Langer and Wall Street son Jason.
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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