Gary Woodland looks down the fairway on the second hole during the third round of the Wells Fargo Championship golf tournament at Quail Hollow on Saturday, May 8, 2021, in Charlotte, N.C.
Former University of Kansas golf standout Gary Woodland battled his way to an even-par 71 on Friday at Torrey Pines to earn two more rounds at this year’s Open.
Woodland, who shot a 3-over 74 on Thursday, flirted with the cut line throughout Friday’s round and just made the cut at +4 for the tournament. Golfers who shot +5 or worse through the event’s first two rounds were sent home for the weekend.
Starting on the back nine on Friday, Woodland opened his round with four pars and a bogey before recording birdies on three of his final four holes on the front.
His fortunes were reversed on the second nine, however, as he carded three bogeys in his first five holes before snagging a birdie at No. 7 to safely stay above the cut line.
Woodland, who won the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, enters the weekend nine shots behind co-leaders Richard Bland and Russell Henley, who lead by one at 5-under.
A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.
