ORLANDO, Fla. — Matt Kuchar and his college-bound son made birdie on all but three holes for a 15-under 57 to build a two-shot lead over John Daly and his college son in the PNC Championship on a gorgeous Saturday when both sons carried the load in a scramble format.
“He’s the horse and the saddle. That’s all there is to it,” Daly, the two-time major champion, said of John Daly II, the Southern Amateur champion and a senior at Arkansas.
Cameron Kuchar, who is going to TCU next year, drilled a driver and hit wedge to a foot on the first hole for birdie. Kuchar followed with a drive, wedge and a putt for birdie on the next. That’s when Cameron got the idea to keep track of “solo birdies” made on their own shots.
“He ran a tally up. It was way higher than my tally of solo birdies,” Kuchar said of his son. “He got the best of my today.”
The game within a game — Cameron won — carried them to the low score at the Ritz-Carlton Club and a chance to win the Willie Park Trophy, a red belt that goes to the winning team.
The only glitch was the par-5 14th hole with water running down the left side. Both were in the fairway. Both hit into the water. They had to scramble for par, which in this format felt like a bogey.
“You do feel a bit deflated walking away from a par particularly after the drive he hit,” Kuchar said. “Best thing you can do is just get right back on it, and Cam did that on the next.”
The tournament is popular among players who have won majors of The Players Championship and bring one of their children or a parent. Former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland was the lone newcomer among 20 teams. He is recovering from brain surgery in September 2023 and his father, Dan, is a cancer survivor. They shot 61.
The final round Sunday also is the scramble format, when each team hits from the best ball, so it will be a sprint to the finish with several teams still in the mix, two of them women.
Steve Stricker and daughter Izzi, a sophomore at Wisconsin, were at 12-under 60 along with two-time LPGA major champion Nelly Korda and her father, former Australian Open tennis champion Petr Korda.
Also at 60 was Davis Love III and Davis Love IV — he goes by Dru — who won this twice in 2012 and 2018. Dru Love had an Asian Tour card which kept him from playing the PNC, but he no longer has a card on any tour and the Loves were late entries when a number of players — Tiger Woods, Justin Thomas and Gary Player — were kept from playing because of injury or health issues.
Daly and Little John also are past champions, beating Woods and his son Charlie in 2021. The son delivered the goods on the par-5 closing hole with an 8-iron from 190 yards to 10 feet.
Annika Sorenstam and her son, Will McGee, were in the group at 11-under 61 that included the Woodlands and Justin Leonard and his college son Luke (Villanova). David Duval and his son also were at 61 along with two-time defending champions, Bernhard Langer and Wall Street son Jason.
