Playing your best golf on any given week is no easy task, but playing well on a consistent basis is another story entirely. One shining example of this was Grayson Murray’s rookie season on the US PGA Tour, which began with eight missed cuts and two top-12 finishes in his first 11 starts. There were a few tournaments where his best showed up, and others where he just didn’t have it.
Murray was able to find more consistency late in the year, making 10 straight cuts between April and July and notching his first PGA Tour victory at the Barbasol Championship. Since then though, the Raleigh, North Carolina native has struggled to string four solid rounds together, including this week in the CIMB Classic, which has been an absolute rollercoaster for Murray:
Round 1: 8️⃣2️⃣
Round 2: 7️⃣4️⃣
Round 3: 6️⃣4️⃣Golf is weird. pic.twitter.com/YuhDtFMb82
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 14, 2017
While those are some wild-looking scores, it’s how he’s shot them that’s particularly amusing. After an opening round 82 that featured two 7s, Murray settled down on Friday, going out in two-under 34 on the back nine of TPC Kuala Lumpur’s West Course. But on the home nine, Murray added his third 7 of the week with a quadruple bogey at the par-3 fourth hole. He played his final five holes in one under to finish with a two-over 74.
On Saturday, Murray showed the same resiliency that earned him his first win on the PGA Tour, a victory that came two weeks after a final round 81 at the Quicken Loans National. This time, he went out on the back in five-under 31, making four birdies and an eagle-2 at the par-4 16th. After a par at the par-4 first, his 10th, Murray made another 7, this one a triple-bogey at the par-4 second. He got all three shots back and then some, making four birdies, another eagle and two pars on his last seven holes to post an eight-under 64, one back of Hideki Matsuyama’s 63, the low round of the day.
For those counting, Murray’s numbers look something like this: two eagles, 14 birdies, 26 pars, six bogeys, three double bogeys and three dreaded “others.” That’s the kind of volatility that makes Phil Mickelson’s game look safe. Impressive stuff from Murray, not that we would recommend it.
