PGA Championship 2015 Tee Times: Groupings and Predictions for Friday Schedule
There is a familiar name atop the 2015 PGA Championship after one round, but some of the best golfers in the world are chasing leader Dustin Johnson.
Johnson turned in a brilliant six-under 66 Thursday and is a stroke ahead of David Lingmerth and two strokes ahead of a number of other golfers tied at four under. Perhaps more importantly, he is five strokes ahead of the red-hot Jordan Spieth and world No. 1 Rory McIlroy, who both shot one-under 71.
This is the fifth time in 13 rounds at the 2015 majors that Johnson held at least a share of the lead.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
The top of the leaderboard can be found below, with the full scorecard at PGA.com.
Thursday's performances won't mean anything if the top golfers don't carry momentum over into the second round. Here is a look at Friday's marquee tee times (all tee times can be found at PGA.com).
| 8:05 a.m. | Jordan Spieth | Rory McIlroy | Zach Johnson |
| 8:15 a.m. | Jason Dufner | Phil Mickelson | Padraig Harrington |
| 1 p.m. | Bubba Watson | Jim Furyk | Paul Casey |
| 1:20 p.m. | Rickie Fowler | Jason Day | Dustin Johnson |
| 1:30 p.m. | Tiger Woods | Martin Kaymer | Keegan Bradley |
With the first round officially in the rearview mirror, let's look at some predictions for Friday's action.
Friday Predictions
Dustin Johnson Adds to His Lead
Johnson's sitting atop the leaderboard at a major is nothing new. As mentioned, Thursday marks the fifth time in 13 rounds at this year's majors he held at least a share of the lead.
He seized early momentum at Whistling Straits with a six-under 66, and ESPN Stats & Info noted that it was business as usual:
It was important for Johnson to play well out of the gate at Whistling Straits considering it was the location of the 2010 PGA Championship. In that tournament, Johnson grounded his club in a bunker that appeared to be a spectator area and was penalized two shots, which cost him a chance at a playoff. If nothing else, Thursday's performance should help him push those memories to the back of his mind.
Unfortunately for Johnson, he experienced similar heartbreak this season when he three-putted at the U.S. Open to miss the playoff and lost his two-round lead at the British Open. This early lead is all too familiar, as former PGA Tour beat writer and current editor of Golfblot.com Steve Elling pointed out:
Johnson may once again fail to convert an initial lead into a victory at a major, but at least he is in the right state of mind, per Jason Sobel of ESPN.com:
The clutch putts will come Sunday, but Johnson will extend his lead Friday on the greens. He took advantage of his putting opportunities in the first round with five birdies, an eagle and only one bogey, which is critical because those chances will always be there. After all, he is No. 1 on the PGA Tour in driving distance this season, per PGATour.com, and typically has shorter approach shots than his competition.
The early putting was an excellent sign for Johnson. If he keeps knocking those in, he will remain in contention the rest of the tournament and perhaps finally win his first major of 2015.
Jordan Spieth Makes a Charge
Spieth was nothing if not consistent Thursday.
In fact, he scored a par on the first 10 holes before finally bogeying No. 11. The superstar who is attempting to become just the third player in history to win three majors in a single season (along with Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods) then bounced back with two birdies in the final seven holes and turned in a 71.
It wasn't one of the vintage performances from Spieth that helped him win the Masters Tournament and U.S. Open this year, but he is well within striking distance. That is unfortunate news for Johnson and the rest of the field considering the former Texas Longhorn wasn't anywhere near his best.
Spieth certainly understands how to bounce back, though, as evidenced by his ability to quickly recover from a bogey, per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel:
What's more, he wasn't exactly thrilled with his outing in the first round. Sobel pointed out why that is a problem for everyone else:
The cliche that you can't win a tournament but you can lose it in the first round is true, and Spieth did not lose it Thursday. He has been dominant on the course this season at the biggest moments with two major wins and a near miss at the British Open, and the biggest moments of the 2015 PGA Championship are yet to come.
Spieth will look more like himself Friday and ultimately play his way into contention by the weekend based on this year's precedent alone.
Tiger Woods Misses the Cut
There was a time when the biggest question entering a golf tournament was who would win between Tiger Woods and the field. Now the biggest question concerning Woods is whether he will actually make the cut at the year's final major.
The answer after Friday will be a resounding no.
Woods labored his way to a three-over 75 in the first round at Whistling Straits, largely because his putter failed him in critical moments. The outing put him on the outside looking in at the potential cut line, since the top 70 and ties make it through to the weekend. The former world No. 1 has his work cut out for him.
Woods hit 12 of 18 greens in regulation Thursday, but he still needed 33 putts to close the round.
Woods commented on his putting, per Bob Harig of ESPN.com: "I've had good putting rounds and I had bad striking days on those days and then the flip side of it. So, just got to get a combo right and then have it for three more days. ... Probably one of the worst putting rounds I've had in a very long time. But I hit it good today, so that's about it."
Ray and ESPN Stats & Info highlighted that Thursday's performance was the progression of a concerning pattern:
There is no real reason for optimism moving forward given how Woods has played this year. He already missed three cuts and withdrew from a tournament in his 10 previous starts, and his best finish was a tie for 17th at the Masters. He is simply a shell of what he used to be on the golf course at this point and will miss the cut at the PGA Championship.
It will be his third straight missed cut at a major.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
