ORLANDO, Fla. – One of the PGA Tour’s toughest tests yielded a scoring anomaly Sunday with Keegan Bradley becoming the first player to post a sub-30 score for nine holes at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Bay Hill, which regularly ranks among the circuit’s most difficult courses, showed its teeth this week with high winds and dry conditions for the first two rounds, but Bradley’s front-nine 29 was a record at Arnie’s Place.
“I didn’t [know that he had shot 29], but I figured, I was walking off 9 trying to figure out if I did shoot 29, and I was pretty sure I did, but it was exciting,” said Bradley, who finished with a 64 to move into a tie for sixth following his round.
The 7-under nine was highlighted by an eagle hole-out at the par-5 sixth hole and an unlikely birdie at the par-4 ninth hole following a wayward drive into a sandy area well left of the fairway.
“I hit a terrible drive on 9 and, like, terrible. And it rolled up and I had 102 yards straight looking at the flag. Like, sometimes you get good breaks and that’s what happens,” said Bradley, who hit his approach at No. 9 to 4 feet to cap the historic start.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational moved to Bay Hill in 1979 and the course currently has a 72.56 scoring average for the week, which would rank as the third-toughest this season on Tour.
