On Friday, Espen Kofstad introduced a stealth-free golf on his second round of the PGA Tour. On Saturday, the big game continued before the third round stopped.
Publication date: 10.07.22, at 7.39
Seven pairs and two sparrows. That was all Espen Kofstad managed to score in the third round of the Barbasol Championships on Saturday before darkness took over the players. But that was enough for the Norwegian to climb up 11 new spots on the leaderboard.
With a total score of -11, his PGA Tour debut is #18, just six strokes behind captain Max McGreevy (-17). And there is still plenty of golf in Nicholasville, Kentucky.
Because the Weather Gods didn’t play in teams at all on Saturday. When the sky opened, track crews had to walk barefoot to bunkers to unload them with buckets and buckets. Delays mean that few players have completed the third round. According to the PGA Tour, the course is not playable.
– Wow, it’s hard to explain how much it rains now. He wrote on Twitter on Saturday afternoon that the track was flooded.
Oh my gosh, it’s hard to explain how hard it is raining right now. The course was flooded…
– Espen Kofstad July 9, 2022
Kofstad reached at least nine holes. After five straight pairs, the first jumper of the day came on the sixth hole, the 4-bar hole. And when the 34-year-old made a bird at number eight, he advanced with new places on the list.
– Like a game
Friday’s tour was also postponed due to rain.
– I woke up at five this morning, and I was on the course at 6. You didn’t see above the water in the ninth hole. Then we just sat there waiting, but I played hard all day. It felt like a game. It was just the way I wanted, Espen Kovstad says in an interview shown on Eurosport.
On hole 8, Kofstad made an eagle, which was his second eagle in two rounds on the PGA Tour.
– It’s stealth-free golf my go-to. I try not to play hard, but to make good, safe choices along the way. I was sick near the eagle on the first hole 5 (hole 5) where I was about six feet away. In the next hole from 5 feet, I hit a very nice inlet, and rolled into a knockout. It was as it was supposed to be.
Kofstad says it’s so exciting to finally get the opportunity he’s been waiting for.
– I’ve been a pro for eleven years, and I’ve always wanted to play on the PGA Tour. It’s a dream and I try to enjoy every moment. It’s great that you can play both rounds at the same time, and that you can move fields from one continent to another. I just see that as a positive.
Norwegian golf in progress
Kovstad is thus the fourth Norwegian golfer on the PGA Tour. After Henrik Björnstad, Victor Hovland and Christopher Ventura. The interviewer also noted the Norwegian flag.
– It’s great (How Norwegian Golf Develops, .anm.magazine). We have a PGA Tour winner with Hovland, and Kristian Krogh Johannessen won the Challenge Tour last week. In addition to playing I good here. It’s fun to have so many Norwegian players on their way up.
Because Kofstad has really made a name for itself In his first appearance on the PGA Tour. One of the day’s best rounds – of 66 strokes – means Kofstad advances 29 spots on Friday’s hit list, up to 23rd.
– I am so happy. The game has been going strong for two days, Kovstad told Norsk Golf shortly after the tour ended.
For the second day in a row, Kofstad made an eagle, this time after rolling down a four-meter hole. Add four birds, thirteen pairs, and the VIPs, the 34-year-old has one of Friday’s best rounds. Thunderstorms delayed Friday’s tour.
– I’m only playing against my goals, I’m a great driver from a tee, so you just have to be patient and wait for the next opportunities. The course isn’t that hard, so there’s no intention of “defending” in a round, Kovstad answers questions about game strategy along the way.
Last chance open
after existence Incredibly close to qualifying for his first major tournament (twice last week)This week’s tournament is the last chance for the Norwegian Olympian. With the win, Kovstad will get a ticket to next week’s Open Championship which will be held in St Andrews.
– It’s not something I think about. The 34-year-old says it should be a bonus.
– How have you performed in relation to your expectations so far?
– I’ve been playing exactly the same for two weeks now, and I’m happy with how it went.
“Infuriatingly humble internet trailblazer. Twitter buff. Beer nerd. Bacon scholar. Coffee practitioner.”
