The success of the 2017 CP Women’s Open continued this past week as the LPGA Tournament Owners Association (TOA) presented Golf Canada and Canadian Pacific (CP) with a Gold Driver Award for Best Charity / Community Engagement among all LPGA Tour events.

The annual TOA Gold Driver Awards were hosted in conjunction with the LPGA’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship at The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort in Naples, Fla. The TOA was formally established in 1990 and is composed of owned and operated LPGA Tour events.

As part of their sponsorship of the event, Canadian Pacific through its CP Has Heart campaign, raised $2 million in support for the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) to help fund a renovated catheterization lab and interventional suite.

“This award is the result of a total team effort and we share it with our friends at CHEO and countless community supporters, as well as CP’s staff, event partners and our CP golf ambassadors Brooke Henderson and Lorie Kane,” said Keith Creel, CP President and Chief Executive Officer. “CP supports heart health because it is an issue that touches so many Canadians. Together with our partners at Golf Canada and everyone involved with the CP Women’s Open, we are proud to leave a lasting charitable legacy in Ottawa through CP Has Heart in support of CHEO’s incredible work.”

The total charity contribution was the result of several fundraising activities tied to the CP Has Heart campaign. Through CP Birdies for Heart, CP contributed $5,000 for each birdie made by a player on the 15th hole at Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club during tournament play with a total of 45 birdies representing a $225,000 donation. CP also matched all donations made online at cheoheart.com from April 1 to the end of the tournament.

In the four years of CP’s title sponsorship of the CP Women’s Open, $6.5 million has been raised to support children’s heart health in Canada.

“It is incredibly rewarding to see the CP Has Heart campaign honoured by the LPGA Tournament Owners with a Gold Driver Award for Best Charity/Community Engagement,” said Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum. “Thanks to tremendous fan, player and partner support, the 2017 CP Women’s Open was a resounding success and it is most deserving that CP’s community impact has been recognized with this meaningful award.”

The 2017 CP Women’s Open saw rookie sensation Sung Hyun Park card a final-round 64 to capture Canada’s National Open Golf Championship just weeks after earning her U.S. Women’s Open title.  Park went on to share Rolex Player of the Year honours with fellow Korean So Yeon Ryu, making her the first player since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to win both Player and Rookie of the Year honours in the same season.

The 2018 CP Women’s Open will mark the first time the province of Saskatchewan will host a major LPGA Tour event when the world’s best players challenge Regina’s Wascana Country Club August 20-26, 2018. Through the CP Has Heart campaign, CP will once again make a substantial donation to the host community by supporting pediatric cardiology at the new Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital, which is currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2019.

Information regarding tickets and corporate hospitality for the 2018 CP Women’s Open can be found at www.cpwomensopen.com.

Can it really be 21 years since Tiger Woods made his RBC Canadian Open debut in only his second start as a PGA TOUR pro?

In 1996, at the age of 20, the man who would galvanize the sport came to Glen Abbey in his fifth start that season. Despite coming off a missed cut at The Masters, a T82 at the U.S. Open, a T22 at The Open Championship and a T60 at the Greater Milwaukee Open where he turned pro, expectations were off the chart.

He would finish 11th at Glen Abbey and use that as a springboard to win twice that season.

Maybe “springboard” is an understatement. It was more like a rocket launcher that would revolutionize the sport.

Tiger blew up golf. He did so unabashedly and to some, arrogantly. Remember “Hello, world,” his announcement when he turned pro at the Greater Milwaukee Open? But if there is an instance where arrogance can be justified, that was it.

In 1997, less than a year after turning pro, he was the world’s top-ranked golfer, an honour he regained multiple times, including five-year spans from 1999 to 2004 and then 2005 to 2010. He has been the PGA Player of the Year a record 11 times, won 14 majors and 79 PGA TOUR events.

Yes, Tiger Woods galvanized and revolutionized golf, immeasurably raising the profile of the game and expanding its horizons.

But, as his career progressed, he also polarized it.

Mention his name to a group of golfers and you will get a cacophony of opinions. Yes, he is, arguably, the best the game has ever seen. No, he’s always thought he was about more than the game, he’s a serial adulterer, he’s a pill-popping shadow of the icon he once was.

As the 41-year-old prepares to make his return this week to competitive golf in an elite 18-man field at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, those opinions are being voiced even louder.

Many will watch for the same reason viewers tune into a NASCAR race, less for the competition than in anticipation of the inevitable fiery crash.

Those folks should be reminded of one of the many admirable attributes of sport: its redemptive power.

Multiple knee and back surgeries, plus other ailments, not only hobbled Tiger and crippled his game, but made him susceptible to a reliance on prescription medications. His public humiliation in 2009 that led to his divorce plus his recent arrest for reckless driving have given the naysayers more negative ammunition. (For a comprehensive list, click here)

But, on the upside, he says he is pain-free for the first time in years and swinging well, although that swing now is a shadow of him at his pinnacle. Having said that, many knowledgeable observers feel it may be good enough to win again on TOUR. As he once said, he can win, even with his “C” game. There has been much money lost betting against Tiger.

Love him or hate him, no one can deny Tiger Woods was a golf god. But, as the Bible says, gods have heads of gold but feet of clay, an inevitable weakness that reveals their human vulnerability. Tiger, now ranked 1,193rd in the world, is but the latest evidence of that.

Given that undeniable truth, as we prepare to witness “Hello World 2.0”, let’s focus less on the clay and more on the gold.

And, perhaps, we will have the opportunity to watch him relive his golden moments at Glen Abbey at the 2018 RBC Canadian Open. Not only would it revive memories of the 1996 bedlam that accompanied him but also that unforgettable 6-iron out of the bunker on 18 that won him the 2000 RBC Canadian Open.

Redemption?

Stay tuned.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.  – Seven Canadians are among 166 hopefuls vying for status on the LPGA Tour in the final stage of qualifying on the Jones and Hills courses of LPGA International from Nov. 28 – Dec. 3

Leading the Canadian contingent is Canadian golf Hall-of-Famer Lorie Kane of Charlottetown, P.E.I. The four-time LPGA champion is joined by fellow Canadians Maude-Aimée LeBlanc (Sherbrooke, Que), Jennifer Ha (Calgary), Elizabeth Tong (Thornhill, Ont.), Samantha Richdale (Kelowna, B.C.), Brittany Marchand (Orangeville, Ont.) and Augusta James (Bath, Ont.).

All participants will compete in 90 holes of stroke play for one of 20 full-time LPGA cards available. Those who finish in places 21-45 (plus ties) will earn conditional status.

Click here for scoring.

Global Golf Post (GGP) publication named their selections to the fifth annual All-Amateur teams. GGP named 195 players in total from 25 countries, based primarily on the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).

Among those selected were nine Canadian standouts:

Also making the list were Jennifer Kupcho (Westminster, Colo.), Sue Wooster (Australia) and Gene Elliot (West Des Moines, Iowa) — winners of the Canadian Women’s Amateur, Women’s Senior, and Men’s Senior championships, respectively.

Click here for the full listing.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. _ Austin Cook was chased by proven PGA Tour winners all day at the RSM Classic.

Now the Arkansas player is one of them.

The PGA Tour rookie held off veterans Brian Gay, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner and Brian Harman on Sunday at the chilly, windy Sea Island Club’s Seaside Course.

Cook closed with a 3-under 67 for a four-stroke victory over J.J. Spaun. The victory in the final PGA Tour event of the calendar year gave Cook a spot in the Masters next year.

“It was definitely exciting … real brutal with the wind,” Cook said. “I got off to a slow start but I was able to keep my head level and know there was a lot of golf to be played. With the wind and those conditions, a lot could happen.”

Cook birdied three of his last four holes after the three-shot lead he began the day with slipped to one over Spaun. Cook made a 14-foot birdie putt at No. 18 to finish at 21-under 261.

Spaun shot a 66.

Gay, the oldest contender of the week at 45, eagled the par-4 18th hole from 161 yards with a 9-iron to break out of a five-way tie for third and finish at 16 under. He shot 68.

Kirk (71) and Kisner (68), past winners of the tournament, St. Simons Island resident Brian Harman (65) and Andrew Landry (67) tied for fourth at 14 under.

Cook, the 26-year-old from Little Rock, earned $1,116,000 and improved to third on the FedEx Cup points list.

It’s the second year in a row that a rookie won the RSM Classic. Mac Hughes of Dundas, Ont., survived a five-way playoff to capture the title last year in a Monday finish, but missed this year’s cut.

Ben Silverman (66) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian, jumping up five spots and tying for eighth at 13 under. David Hearn (65) of Brantford, Ont., was 11 under and Corey Conners (69) of Listowel, Ont., was 7 under.

From @MacHughesGolf to @austincookgolf.

Another rookie winner at @TheRSMClassic. pic.twitter.com/v9K5EP4fa5

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 20, 2017

Spaun, a stocky former University of San Diego player, made the biggest move of the day and twice cut Cook’s lead to one shot _ the last time on an 8-foot birdie putt at the par-4 16th.

However, Spaun bogeyed No. 17 when he failed to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker, and Cook birdied No. 15 with a 4-footer and No. 17 with a 15-footer to seal the victory.

Spaun’s birdie at No. 16 could have put him into a tie for the lead but he missed a 4-foot birdie attempt on the previous hole.

“That (Spaun’s miss at No. 15) was big,” said Cook, who said he’s an obsessive leaderboard-watcher and knew exactly when Spaun had come within a shot.

Cook, who has Gay’s former caddie, Kip Henley, carrying his bag, never slipped after a bogey at the second hole, just his second of the week. He missed only two fairways in the final round and made par after four of his five missed greens. He led the field in scrambling, converting 11 of 12 pars after missing greens, and tied for fourth by hitting 48 of 56 fairways.

“With Kip on the bag, he was able to keep me in the moment and keep me pressing instead of playing conservative,” Cook said. “There was a lot of stuff going on, mostly up here (tapping his head). My ball-striking was great and for the most part, my putting was great. Holding the nerves down, playing a good round in these conditions. … I’m so happy.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Lexi Thompson won $1 million for the CME Race to the Globe and left so much more behind Sunday in the LPGA Tour’s final event.

Thompson was poised to win the CME Group Tour Championship and LPGA player of the year until she jabbed at a 2-foot par putt and missed it on the 18th hole at Tiburon Golf Club. That paved the way for Ariya Jutanugarn, who birdied her last two holes for a 5-under 67 and a one-shot victory.

It was a wild ending to the LPGA Tour season and sent four players home with a trophy of some variety.

Although she lost the tournament, Thompson still won the CME Race to the Globe and the $1 million bonus. She also won the Vare Trophy for having the lowest adjusted scoring average.

Thompson had to win the tournament to be player of the year. Instead, the points-based LPGA player of the year was a tie between a pair of major champions from South Korea, So Yeon Ryu and LPGA rookie Sung Hyun Park. It was the first time the award was shared since it began in 1966.

Park, the U.S. Women’s Open champion, was trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep the major awards. She already had won rookie of the year. She had to settle for a tie for player of the year, and her 75 in the third round damaged her chances of winning the Vare Trophy.

Brooke Henderson (72) of Smiths Falls, Ont., tied for 25th at 6 under and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) tied for 46th at 1 under.

What stood out on another sunny afternoon was the sterling performance of Jutanugarn, who won for the second time this year.

She was three shots behind Thompson with six holes to play when her putter saved the day.

Jutanugarn was at 13 under on the par-5 17th when she hit a hybrid for her second shot into the bunker and blasted out to about 18 feet. Ahead of her on the 18th green, Thompson was at 15 under and lagged a 50-foot birdie attempt beautifully down the slope on the 18th to 2 feet left of the cup.

Jutanugarn made birdie. Thompson missed her par putt, and there was a three-way tie for the lead at 14 under that included Jessica Korda, who was playing with Thompson and had left her 25-foot birdie attempt well short.

Thompson and Korda each closed with a 67.

Jutanugarn hit her approach about 18 feet above the hole and made it for winning birdie. She finished at 15-under 273 and earned $500,000.

“I had no expectation at all,” Jutanugarn said. “I really did not think about the outcome.”

Jutanugarn was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round, and the CME Group Tour Championship was up for grabs most of the day until Thompson seemingly seized control with 32 on the front nine, a 10-foot birdie on the 13th and then a superb pitch from left of the 17th green that set up a 3-foot birdie.

Pernilla Lindberg had reason to believe she needed birdie from long range on the 18th to have a chance. She ran that 7 feet by the hole and three-putted for a bogey and a 68. She wound up finishing two shots behind, along with Eun-Hee Ji (67).

Michelle Wie, trying to win for the first time since the U.S. Women’s Open in 2014, had a share of the lead until she hit near the edge of a bunker and made double bogey on No. 9, and then dropped two more shots on the back nine. Even with seven birdies, Wie still only managed a 70. She tied for sixth with Park, who closed with a 69. Park was at 13 under through 35 holes and played 1 over the final 37 holes.

Ryu was coping with a shoulder injury and was happy to squeeze in 72 holes. She wound up a part-winner of LPGA player of the year.

Thompson was on the putting green when she heard the cheer for Jutanugarn’s final birdie.

It was the second time this year that Thompson appeared to be in control and was stunned to not win. She had a four-shot lead in the final round of the ANA Inspiration when she was penalized four shots – two for incorrectly marking her golf ball on the green in the third round, and two more shots because the infraction wasn’t discovered by a viewer until the next day, and so she signed an incorrect scorecard in the third round.

She wound up losing to Ryu in a playoff, though Thompson said this week it made her a stronger person.

This will be another wound from which to recover, though she at least takes $1 million home with her as a consolation.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – PGA Tour rookie Austin Cook shot a 4-under 66 on Saturday to increase his lead to three strokes in the RSM Classic.

Cook, a shot ahead after a second-round 62, had five birdies and a bogey – his first of the week – to reach 18-under 194 with a round left at Sea Island Golf Club’s Seaside Course.

“Putting is key right now,” Cook said. “Been able to make a lot of clutch putts for the pars to save no bogeys. Hitting the ball pretty much where we’re looking and giving ourselves good opportunities on every hole.”

Former University of Georgia player Chris Kirk was second after a 64.

“I’m really comfortable here,” Kirk said. “I love Sea Island. I lived here for 6 1/2 years, so I played the golf course a lot, SEC Championships and come down here for the RSM Classic. My family and I, we come down here a few other times a year as well.”

Brian Gay was another stroke back at 14 under after a 69.

“I love the course,” Gay said. “We keep getting different wind directions so it’s keeping us on our toes. Supposed to be another completely different wind direction tomorrow, so we’re getting a new course every day.”

J.J. Spaun had a 62 to get to 13 under.

“I just kind of played stress-free golf out there and kept the golf ball in front of me,” Spaun said. “I had a lot of looks and scrambled pretty well, even though it was only a handful of times, but pretty overall pleased with how I played today.”

Ben Silverman (69) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian at 9 under. David Hearn (69) of Brantford, Ont., and Corey Conners (68) of Listowel, Ont., are 6 under.

Cook has made the weekend cuts in all four of his starts this season. The 26-year-old former Arkansas player earned his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour.

“I think with an extra year on the Web this past year, I really grew mentally and with my game, just kind of more confidence,” Cook said. “I was able to put myself in contention on the Web.com more this year than I have in the past. I think I’ve just, you know, learned from experiences on the Web to help me grow out here.”

He planned to keep it simple Saturday night.

“I’ve got my parents here and my in-laws are both here as well as my wife,” Cook said. “Go home and just have a good home-cooked meal and just kind of enjoy the time and embrace the moment.”

Kirk won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2015 at Colonial.

“It’s nice to be back in contention again,” Kirk said. “It’s been a little while for me. But I felt great out there today, I felt really comfortable, and so hopefully it will be the same way tomorrow and I’ll keep my foot on the pedal and stay aggressive, try to make some birdies.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Sung Hyun Park was in the palmetto bushes, near the base of the tree, in the bunkers and going nowhere in the CME Group Tour Championship.

Perhaps most surprising at the end of the day was that Park was no longer in the lead.

What looked to be a victory lap for the 24-year-old rookie from South Korea turned into a free-for-all Saturday at Tiburon Golf Club. Park at least was in solid position, one shot out of the lead, in her bid to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep all the major LPGA Tour awards.

She just never expected so much company.

Michelle Wie, who lost six weeks to an emergency appendectomy, had a 6-under 66 and was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round. Kim Kaufman, who is recovering from mono, ran off eight birdies in her round of 64. Joining them at 10-under 206 were Ariya Jutanugarn (67) and Suzann Pettersen (69).

“Just really feeling like my old self,” said Wie, who hasn’t won since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst No. 2. “Really feeling comfortable out there and having fun, and that’s why I play my best.”

Brooke Henderson (70) of Smiths Falls, Ont., was tied for 23rd at 6-under par. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) was tied for 54th at 2 over.

“Being this far back with that many people ahead of you it’s very unlikely that I could be the champion of this event this year,” said Henderson. “However, I can still get into the top 10, maybe even better if I get off to a hot start tomorrow and hopefully make a few putts.”

Park, who didn’t make a birdie until the 13th hole and shot 75, was among seven players one shot behind.

Now she can only hope her one bad day is behind her.

“I think that over the course of four days, there is always a day where I’m not quite in tip-top shape,” Park said. “I think that day might have been today. Keeping your focus is not that easy to do consistently over four days, so I think there is always one day where my focus is a little off.”

Lexi Thompson, who leads the CME Race to the Globe, suddenly has just as good of a chance as Park to capture the $1 million bonus. Thompson also is poised to win the Vare Trophy for the lowest adjusted scoring average. Park needed to finish 10 shots ahead of Thompson – she started Saturday six shots ahead – to win the Vare Trophy.

“I’m not going into tomorrow with any different attitude,” Thompson said. “Just going to go out there, free swing, commit to my targets, and try to do my best.”

The final day is so wide open that 31 players were separated by four shots.

That includes Shanshan Feng, in her debut at No. 1 in the world, and Brooke Henderson of Canada. They only have to win the Tour Championship to claim the CME Race to the Globe. And they all have Park to thank for every having a chance.

Kaufman showed early that low scores were available in her round of eight birdies. Park showed early that it was going to be a grind when she missed the green to the left on No. 2 and pitched far too strong up the slope, leading to bogey.

Then, she hit into palmetto bushes on the par-5 sixth and made double bogey, and the game was on.

Park looked as though she had steadied herself with an 8-foot birdie on No. 13 and scrambling for birdie after a poor drive in the waste area right of the 14th. But she took bogey from the bunker on the par-3 16th to fall back into a share of the lead, and then drove well left on the par-5 17th next to a tree. She chipped into a sandy waste area, came up short into a bunker and failed to get up-and-down.

Stacy Lewis (67), who ended a three-year victory drought two months ago, shot a 67 and was in the group at 9-under 207 that included Thompson (69), Park, Karine Icher (68) and Austin Ernst, whose 69 featured a quadruple-bogey 8 and an eagle-birdie finish on the back nine.

At stake on Sunday is just about everything.

So Yeon Ryu, who was only five shots behind but had 31 players ahead of her on the leaderboard, still had an outside chance at holding on to her lead for LPGA player of the year if Feng, Park and Thompson failed to finish near the top of the leaderboard.

Thompson suddenly looks good for the Vare, while Park remained in good shape to capture the money title.

Jutanugarn, who won five times last year, is No. 9 in the CME Race to the Globe. She could win the $1 million bonus by winning the tournament and have Thompson finish out of the top nine. Instead of a sprint to the finish, so many players have a chance that it still feels like a long way off.

NAPLES, Fla. – Golf felt so easy to Sung Hyun Park that only when she took out her card to catch up on her scores did she realize she had closed out the front nine with five straight birdies at the CME Group Tour Championship.

Park kept right on attacking.

The 24-year-old from South Korea added a 30-foot eagle putt late in her second round and finished with a 7-under 65, giving her a three-shot lead going into the weekend at Tiburon Golf Club.

Nothing seems to bother her, even the chance to cap off an amazing rookie season by sweeping all the big awards on the LPGA Tour.

“To be honest, I don’t feel quite as nervous as I thought I would,” Park said through an interpreter. “After the first shot, after the first hole, I felt a lot more comfortable. I’m not feeling as nervous as I thought I might be going into today.”

Leave that to the players chasing her.

Even with a three-putt bogey on the final hole, Park was at 12-under 132 and was three shots clear of Caroline Masson (66) and Sarah Jane Smith (69).

More importantly, none of the other players in the chase for the $1 million Race to the CME Globe bonus or any other big award was within five shots of Park, who is trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to win LPGA player of the year.

Lexi Thompson, who leads the Race to the CME Globe and the Vare Trophy for lowest adjusted scoring average, shot a 67 and wound up losing ground. She was six shots behind and must stay within 10 shots of Park to win the Vare.

So Yeon Ryu, who leads the points-based award for player of the year, managed a 71 with her sore right shoulder but was 11 shots back.

The other two players who need to win the tournament to collect the $1 million bonus also had their work cut out for them. Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., had another 70 and was eight shots behind, while world No. 1 Shanshan Feng shot 73 and was 11 shots behind. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 5 over.

Park was in control, only she didn’t see it that way.

“I don’t think it’s quite that far of a lead,” Park said. “Two, three shots of a lead can change at any moment. We will have to see what’s in store for this weekend.”

Park began her big run with an 18-foot birdie on No. 5, got up-and-down for birdie from just off the green at the par-5 sixth, holed a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 7, and then closed out the front nine with birdie putts from 8 feet and 15 feet.

“I actually didn’t know that I was going five birdies in a row,” Park said. “Come hole No. 10, I realized that I hadn’t been jotting down my scores as diligently, and so I realized it a little bit later on. And it felt great.”

That gave her the lead by one shot over Suzann Pettersen, except that Pettersen faded badly on the back nine.

Pettersen dropped four shots in a three-hole stretch by getting out of position off the tee and she shot 39 on the back nine for a 70 to fall five shots behind.

“I feel like I’m playing good,” Pettersen said. “Three bad drives on the back nine cost me four shots. That should not be possible on this course, where the fairways are about 100 yards wide.”

Park was honoured at an awards banquet Thursday night as the LPGA rookie of the year. Now, she has more awards in her sights. A victory would give her the award for player of the year. She would capture the money title, which she leads over Ryu. And depending on how the weekend goes, she might be able to surpass Thompson in the race for the Vare Trophy.

Thompson did well to recover from two bogeys on her opening three holes.

“I hit a few really erratic shots in the beginning. It wasn’t a good start to the round,” Thompson said. “Just tried to stay positive and find something that could work for the last 14, 15 holes.”

Lydia Ko fell six shots behind in her bid to avoid a winless season. She was one shot behind going into the second round but managed only three birdies in her round of 71.

Park, meanwhile, had everything going her way. Even when she pulled her drive on the par-5 14th into a sandy area with a root next to her ball, she picked it clear and sent it through a goal post of trees back to the fairway. Three holes later, she blasted a drive and had only a 7-iron into the green at the par-5 17th, which she hit to 30 feet and made the long putt.

Does anything make her nervous?

“I hate spiders,” she said. “But in terms of golf, I always get nervous to this day on the first tee. I can feel my heart pounding.”

It’s a feeling that doesn’t appear to last very long.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. _ PGA Tour rookie Austin Cook made a 6-foot birdie putt on his final hole for an 8-under 62 and a one-shot lead going into the weekend at the RSM Classic.

Cook has gone 36 holes without a bogey on the Plantation and Seaside courses at Sea Island Golf Club. He played Seaside _ the site of the final two rounds in the last PGA Tour event of the calendar year _ on Friday and ran off four straight birdies on his opening nine holes.

“We’ve just been able to it hit the ball really well,” Cook said. “Speed on greens has been really good and getting up-and-down has been great. I’ve been able to hit it pretty close to the hole to make some pretty stress-free putts. But the couple putts that I have had of some length for par, I’ve been able to roll them in. Everything’s going well.”

The 26-year-old former Arkansas player was at 14-under 128 and had a one-stroke lead over Brian Gay, who shot 64 on Seaside. No one else was closer than five shots going into the final two rounds.

The 45-year-old Gay won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2013.

“I’ve hit a lot of greens and fairways,” Gay said. “I’ve hit the ball, kept it in front of me. There’s a lot of trouble out here, especially with the wind blowing, so I haven’t had to make too many saves the first couple days and I putted well.”

Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., shot a second straigh 67 for an 8 under total through two rounds. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., was 5 under and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., was 4 under.

Cook has made the weekend cuts in all four of his starts this season. He earned his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour, and has hired Gay’s former caddie, Kip Henley.

“With him being out here so long, he knows everybody, so it’s not like I’m completely the new kid on the block,” Cook said. “He’s introduced me to a lot of people, so it’s just making me feel comfortable out here. He knows his way around these golf courses. We’re working really well together.”

First-round leader Chris Kirk followed his opening 63 on the Plantation with a 70 on the Seaside to drop into a tie for third at 9 under with C.T. Pan (65) and Vaughn Taylor (66).

Brandt Snedeker is looking strong in his first start in some five months because of a sternum injury. Snedeker shot a 67 on the Plantation course and was six shots back at 8 under.

“I was hitting the ball really well coming down here,” Snedeker said. “I was anxious to see how I would hold up under pressure. I haven’t played a tournament in five months, so it’s held up better than I thought it would. Ball-striking’s been really good, mental capacity’s been unbelievable.

“I think being so fresh, excited to be out there and thinking clearly. My short game, which has always been a strength of mine, I didn’t know how sharp it was going to be. It’s been really good so far.”