ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Michael Thorbjornsen is coming off knee surgery and ditched the brace in time to post an 8-under 64 on the Plattation course Thursday and share the lead to match Stanford alumnus Maverick McNealy in the season-ending RSM. The Classic on the PGA Tour.
McNealy had an 8-under 62 on the Seaside course at Sea Island, which was heavily exposed to the cold winds blowing through the Golden Isles.
Torbjornsen was not a great player with knee problems and a brace. Ludvig Åberg, the No. 5 player in the world, had not competed in the Tour Championship, taking time off for meniscus surgery and returning to the course where he tied the PGA Tour record of 72 holes.
That record seems safe, at least to him. Aberg’s flawless swing looked as strong as ever. It was a short game — chipping and putting — that set him back on his round of 73 at Seaside.
“It was tough. Obviously, it was a tough day,” Aberg said. “There was a lot of rust that I felt about it, but I also felt like the good was pretty good but the bad was really bad. A little bit of everything today, but all in all, I’m very happy to be playing golf again.”
Ditto for Thorbjornsen, who earned a card as the top-ranked player on the PGA Tour University. He was doing well until he felt a pop in his knee while preparing for the Black Desert Championship in Utah in early October.
He thought he could walk until he couldn’t walk at all. It turns out that there are loose veins in the left knee, which requires time off rather than surgery. He returned without missing a step, thankfully not wearing a thick belt.
“It’s actually funny, I was training with Ludwig a little bit back at Sawgrass and we both liked matching left knee pads,” Thorbjornsen said. “It was a little embarrassing. I think this is my third day playing without the brace, so it feels good.”
The RSM Classic is the last tournament of the year, and the focus is on the top 125 — this is the last year the top 125 earns FedEx Cup standing cards.
The PGA Tour included Zac Blair (No. 123), Joel Dahmen (No. 124) and Wesley Bryan (No. 125). Bryan had a 70 at Plantation, Dahmen dashed his hopes with a 73 and Blair came in with a 72.
Another important number is to finish between No. 51 and No.
McNealy has done enough to protect those areas. He was very interested in how the changes worked, and had some amazing moments. McNealy got behind the 15th green for eagle. What drew his attention to the two shots led to the balance taking into account the strong wind in the open sea.
He started at No. 10, which during practice was a driver over the bunkers and the sand line on the green. With the wind, he couldn’t cover the bunkers and was left with a 5 iron to the green.
“I had to hit two good shots in the middle of the green,” he said.
On his closing hole, the ninth, he faced a strong wind from the right.
“I just dived to the left and I was able to hit the window (of the ball) and I circled that ball a little bit from left to right to catch my breath, and that was the most uncomfortable shot I’ve had in the last six months,” McNealy said.
Andrew Novak, the runner-up in Bermuda, had a 7-under 65 on Plantation. Given his location last week in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, where gusts approached 50 mph, he felt the breeze at Sea Island.
“Today it wasn’t windy like Bermuda and I felt like I could get some putts and get in them,” Novak said.
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