All that stands between Nick Hardy and his first made cut in months is 17 feet.
He’ll wait until Saturday morning to take the stroke.
Making cuts haven’t been easy for Hardy, the 29-year-old out of Illinois, as he’s not played a weekend since the World Wide Technology Championship last November. He’s missed five straight cuts, and six of his last seven. The only reason he didn’t lose his PGA Tour card after finishing 147th in points last season is because he still has a winner’s exemption from the 2023 Zurich Classic. So, forgive Hardy if he wants to sleep on things.
In his mind, he’ll have more light and fresh greens when he returns in the morning.
“Look, the sun was down,” said Hardy, who sits at 1 under through 35 holes of this WM Phoenix Open, a shot below the cut line. “I want to give myself the best chance of making that putt, and the competitor in me wants to hit it now, but I know that the best chance for me to make that putt is to come back tomorrow.”
The putt, Hardy says, is downhill, breaking a little right to left. He knows the odds aren’t in his favor, no matter when he putts it – the PGA Tour average from 15-20 feet is 18.48% while Hardy is 2 for 7 from that range so far this year. If he had Frankie Capan III hit the putt for him, he’d have a 46.15% chance of converting, but Hardy says all he can do is put a good roll on it.
“That’s all I can control,” he adds.
Hardy isn’t the only player battling near the cut line who opted to not finish. Lanto Griffin, who sits at 2 under, will play from the left fairway bunker at the par-4 eighth when he returns Saturday morning.
Both players are trying to avoid an early exit along with such notables as Matt Fitzpatrick (1 under), amateur Luke Clanton (1 under), Joel Dahmen (1 over) and Max Homa (3 over). Lucas Glover also missed the cut, at even par, though he made sure he finished, running between shots down the stretch as he birdied two of his last three holes.
Hardy whiffed on a 6-footer for par at the par-4 eighth to put himself in this situation, but luckily for Hardy, he has some experience to lean on. At Colonial last year, he was facing a 15-foot putt when weather delayed the tournament; Hardy returned about an hour and a half later and sank the putt. He also planned to simulate this 17-footer a few times on the practice green on Friday night before doing the same prior to his Saturday restart.
Other than that?
“Stay away from my phone, and rest easy,” Hardy said, “and dream about making that putt.”
Read the full article here
