Rory McIlroy will need to rebound from a stunning loss at the WGC Accenture Match Play Championship in order to stand a chance at defending his title at the Honda Classic.
McIlroy suffered a 1 down loss to Ireland's Shane Lowry this past weekend, but it gave him a chance to play a relaxing round of 36 holes with Nike teammate Tiger Woods who was also eliminated from match play.
Woods, however, will look to pick up where he left off last year after shooting a final-round 62 at the Honda Classic. Tiger wound up with a 270, 10-under, and finished second to McIlroy who shot an overall 268, putting him at 12-under for the course.
Tee-off Times
McIlroy, whose victory in Palm Beach Gardens moved him into the No. 1 spot in the world, will play with Ernie Els and Mark Wilson. The grouping is scheduled to tee off at 12:25 p.m. EST on Thursday and 7:25 a.m. on Friday.
Woods will be playing alongside Martin Kaymer and Dustin Johnson. This trio will hit the links early on Thursday, teeing off at 7:25 a.m. and again on Friday when they tee off at 12:25 p.m.
Another grouping that has been garnering a lot of attention, and will likely draw a following this weekend, sees two young, popular Americans, Keegan Bradley and Rickie Fowler, playing alongside seasoned veteran Lee Westwood.
Westwood also had a blistering last round at the Classic last year, shooting a seven-under 63 that went fairly unnoticed due to the late chase by Tiger.
The biggest factor in this year's Honda Classic will be Tiger's overall health. Woods looks to follow-up his first injury-free season since 2007 with another on route to the winner's circle, a place he has not been familiar with recently.
Woods will need to capitalize on his performance at the Farmers Insurance Open that saw him take home $1,098,000 in earnings and forget about being ousted from the WGC Accenture Match Play Championship.
For McIlroy, a slow start has yet to get him down as he made a public appearance Tuesday night at PGA National to announce his new endorsement deal with Bose. He was relaxed, gave out autographs and even took the time to bounce a golf ball with a wedge in each hand, reminiscent of Tiger's Nike commercial.
So don't count McIlroy out going into the weekend and expect the same late round heroics that has made Tiger a household name. I'm predicting a team Nike 1-2 finish.
TV Schedule:
- Thursday: Golf Channel, 3-6 p.m. EST
- Friday: Golf Channel, 3-6 p.m. EST
- Saturday: Golf Channel, 1-3 p.m. EST; NBC 3-6 p.m. EST
- Sunday: Golf Channel. 1-3 p.m. EST; NBC 3-6 p.m. EST
Live Streaming:
Live Streaming of the event is provided by the PGATour's official website. Click here
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