Golf fans and tournament officials let out a sigh of relief as an event that started out missing some star power will actually have its marquee players advance to the weekend.
Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler are among those who survived the Bear Trap and made the cut at the Honda Classic this week at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Several other big names, however, were not so fortunate and were slamming trunks on Friday evening, including the biggest headline maker from the last two weekends to not win. Check out the most notable players who missed the cut this week at the Honda.
Honda Classic: Leaderboard
Lee Westwood
Lee Westwood and his caddie/son Sam walk up to the 8th green during the first round of the 2021 Honda Classic at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports)
Westwood, who turns 48 next month, will have the weekend off. He followed a gritty, even-par 70 on Thursday afternoon with a 78 on Friday morning on the Champion course at PGA National Resort & Spa. Asked if he simply ran out of gas, Westwood said, “Yeah, about four days ago. … This was probably a tournament too far for me, after the run I’ve had the last two weeks. But I felt like I should play here this week. But in an ideal world this would have been a week off after finishing second the last two weeks. What can you do? Just felt like one I had to play. Kind of glazed over out there I was so tired.”
Westwood had his son Sam on the bag after consecutive weeks with his fiancee Helen Storey.
Jim Furyk
Jim Furyk hits from the third hole during the first round of the 2021 Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Marta Lavandier/Associated Press
Furyk missed the cut by a shot, his first missed cut in five starts on the PGA Tour this season and his first missed cut anywhere since the Wyndham Championship last August. Furyk has made all eight cuts on the PGA Tour Champions since he joined the tour in 2020.
Padraig Harrington
Padraig Harrington lines up a putt on the tenth green during the second round of the 2021 Honda Classic at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
A month ago, Harrington scrambled to get to the Genesis Invitational, fresh of recovering from a bout with COVID. He drove down the night before the first round without a thought of withdrawing. “No. I can’t go home. I can’t go home without a negative PCR, so I don’t have any option but to keep on going. Even if I wanted to stop, I have nowhere to go and kind of in limbo. It could be a couple of months before I get a negative test, which would allow me to travel back to Ireland,” he said at Riviera Country Club. “I’m actually entering more events. … adding tournaments rather than anything else because, as I said, I think that’s the only place I can go.” He missed the cut at the Riv but three weeks ago, playing in the Puerto Rico Open, he finished T-58. Then he finished T-31 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. No such luck this week, as the European Ryder Cup captain has missed the Honda cut, but he has been true to his word to just keep playing.
Erik Compton
Erik Compton watches his ball roll back on the 17th hole during the first round of the 2021 Honda Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Marta Lavandier/Associated Press)
Seven hours after his Monday round, Compton learned he would be one of four players to earn a spot in the Honda Classic. “Monday qualifiers are really difficult unless you have the right frame of mind,” he said after he got in the field. “It’s a completely different mindset. You have to take aggressive lines and hit your shots.” He was staring down the cutline on Friday till he took a quadruple bogey 7 on the par-3 15th hole.
Kamaiu Johnson
Kamaiu Johnson plays his third shot on the 14th hole during the second round of the 2021 Honda Classic at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
The Advocates Pro Golf Association Tour standout, in the Honda field on a sponsor invitation, finished 20 over after posting scores of 81-79.
Henrik Stenson
Henrik Stenson shoos an Egyptian goose from a putting green during second round action of the 2021 Honda Classic at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Thomas Cordy/Palm Beach Post)
Stenson posted scores of 78-75 to finish 13 over in two days at PGA National. He had three double bogeys and a triple set while managing just four birdies.
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