CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Steve Wheatcroft and Andrew Loupe each shot 7-under 65 on Thursday in rain and steady wind to share the first-round lead in the Wells Fargo Championship, while Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler dodged a thrown golf ball with an earplug attached to it.

As if battling a lengthy and saturated course wasn’t enough, playing partners McIlroy and Fowler endured a bizarre event on the sixth tee box when a spectator hurled the dressed-up golf ball their way as Fowler was preparing to hit.

“So random,” Fowler said. “The guy tried to say it was a gift. I don’t know why you would give a gift of a golf ball with an earplug attached to it.”

The fan was escorted from the property by police.

“It was one of those things,” McIlroy said. “It was a golf ball with an ear plug stuck on it, so it was sort of strange.”

Fowler, the 2012 winner, finished with a 71, leaving him six shots behind Wheatcroft and Loupe, who were also paired together. McIlroy, the only two-time winner of the tournament, shot a 73 after a bogey-plagued start to his title defence. He won by seven shots last year, finishing at 21 under.

India’s Anibarn Lahiri was a shot back after a 66.

Phil Mickelson, who has finished in the top five six times in 12 starts at the Wells Fargo Championship but never won, opened with a 69.

“I have been able to play well here over the years, but just haven’t been able to breakthrough and get a victory,” Mickelson said. “But I will keep knocking on the door and hopefully keep giving myself a chance.”

But the talk of the tournament came after McIlroy hit his tee shot on the green on the 250-yard, par-3 sixth hole. When Fowler stepped up to the tee he saw something fly by his left side, startling him for a moment.

He didn’t know what it was until it stopped rolling.

McIlroy wound up with a birdie, while Fowler and the other member of their threesome, Hideki Matsuyama, carded 3s.

The 27-year-old Loupe, who has three top-10 finishes this season, shot 31 on the front nine. Wheatcroft did his work on the four par 5s, playing them in 6 under with two eagles and two birdies.

“Kind of felt like I was trying to keep up the whole time with Steve,” Loupe said. “We both had it rolling early. Just solid golf for the most part, just looking to keep that momentum going.”

McIlroy has some work to do to get into contention if he hopes to become the first three-time winner.

He called his first competitive round since the Masters a “tale of two nines.”

The world’s No. 3-ranked player shot a 4-over 40 while starting on the back side, then got things headed in the right direction with four birdies on the front.

“I was sort of still in range mode on the front nine,” McIlroy said. “I didn’t really have my scoring head on.”

McIlroy, who turned 27 on Wednesday, wasn’t pleased with how he played in the soggy conditions but said the strong finish gave him something strong to build on for Friday.

“I need to go out and shoot a good round, something in the 60s, and get myself back into the tournament going into the weekend,” said McIlroy, who has spent the last three weeks working to fix his swing.

Jim Furyk shot a 73 in his return from an eight-month layoff because of a wrist injury.

Furyk had “no pain, no apprehension,” but said he wasn’t planning to hit many practice balls after the round – which didn’t exactly upset him.

“I don’t enjoy hitting balls, so actually it’s kind of fun,” Furyk said. “I’m not really allowed to or can’t, so I’m enjoying that part of it.”

Top-ranked Jason Day and No. 2 Jordan Spieth did not enter the event, and No. 8 Dustin Johnson withdrew earlier in the week because of unspecified reasons.

PRATTVILLE, Ala. – Laetitia Beck took the first-round lead in the Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic, dodging some of the wind Thursday morning in a bogey-free 7-under 65.

The 24-year-old Beck, the first Israeli player to qualify for the LPGA Tour, was in the first group of the day off 10th tee. She birdied four of the final five holes on her opening nine in calmer conditions, and had three more – two on par 5s – on the windier second nine.

“I think the winds picked up for us only like the last five, six holes, so we played the front nine without much wind,” Beck said. “That front nine was 4 under, so it really helped.”

Annie Park and Minjee Lee were tied for second at 67. They played in the afternoon.

Beck hit 11 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens and had only 26 putts on the links-style Senator Course at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail’s Capitol Hill complex.

“I think here on this golf course it’s all putting, because it’s a very scorable course,” Beck said. “Hitting a lot of greens, hit the right part of the green, and I think I was doing well making putts, even though I did miss birdie opportunities, but I made good putts for birdies.”

Normally held in hotter and firmer conditions late in the summer, the tournament was moved up because of the Olympics.

“The conditions are great,” Beck said. “The greens are softer than what I played last year. They were softer so we can attack more, so I think that’s why it’s a scorable course this year, especially because we can just go for it, especially with having short irons.”

The former Duke player is winless on the tour and has made only two cuts in eight events this season.

Park birdied five of the first seven holes. The 21-year-old former University of Southern California player won three times last year on the Symetra Tour and topped the circuit’s money list.

“It was definitely not easy out there with the wind picking up, but I hit some good shots,” Park said. “There were some lucky shots out there, too, and then I think putting was kind of difficult, especially with the wind and the slopes. There were some really scary putts out there, especially when it’s helping wind downhill, but I had a good round.”

Lee had four straight birdies on her first nine and birdied three of her last five. The 19-year-old Australian won last month in Hawaii for her second LPGA Tour title.

“It was pretty chilly,” Lee said. “I had my jumper on warming up and long pants and long sleeves. … Just the wind makes it cold.”

Mexico’s Alejandra Llaneza opened with a 68.

“I’m pretty happy,” Llaneza said. “I didn’t know what to expect today. I have been actually really sick this week, so I was just like, ‘OK, one shot at a time.’ I think that helped. I got on a roll for a little bit there, so that was exciting.”

Morgan Pressel, Vicky Hurst and Taiwan’s Candie Kung shot 69.

“It was tough out there,” Pressel said. “Once we made the turn, around 10, my hat blew off, I lost my ball marker. The wind played really tough. It was tough to get it close to the hole, really, so when you end up 40 feet on some of these greens, it’s just good to two-putt.”

Michelle Wie had a 71. She’s winless since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open and hasn’t had a top-10 finish in 34 events.

Fourth-ranked Stacy Lewis, the 2012 winner, had a late bogey in a 71. She’s winless in 48 events.

No. 5 Brooke Henderson had a 72. The 18-year-old Canadian has eight top-10 finishes this year.

“It wasn’t one of my best days today, but I hung in there really well and was happy to get two birdies kind of late in my back nine to get it back to even par,” Henderson said. “Definitely some opportunities out there, but the conditions are pretty tough. The wind is pretty strong today.”

Japan’s Haru Nomura also shot 72. She has two victories this season.

Defending champion Kris Tamulis had a 76.

Courtenay, B.C. – California’s Aaron Wise shot a 3-under 69 on Wednesday at Crown Isle Resort and Golf Community to maintain his lead heading into the final round at the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada’s British Columbia Qualifying Tournament.

The 19-year old stumbled to a 1-over front nine, but carded four birdies without a bogey coming in to reach 14-under for the tournament, three shots ahead of Dallas’ Conrad Shindler and San Antonio’s Jeff Rein with one round to go at Crown Isle.

“I didn’t have my best stuff on my front nine, and my short game kept me in it. I had a lot of great up-and-downs. When I got to 10, I kind of re-set my goals and wanted to make six birdies on the back nine. I didn’t do that, but it was still a pretty solid back nine,” said Wise.

The University of Oregon sophomore, who currently ranks no. 6 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, said he kept calm after a wobbly start and set about his business to rebuild his lead on Thursday afternoon

“It’s just knowing your own golf game,” said Wise of making a mid-round correction that paid off. “I’ve worked with my coach long enough to where I know what my swing does and my tendencies under pressure. I knew what I was doing out there; it was just a matter of me fixing it, and it took a few holes, but I did it.”

Wise will turn professional later this spring after completing his collegiate career, but said he isn’t getting ahead of himself even with a huge slate of tournaments on the horizon, instead choosing to focus on the round in front of him on Friday.

“We have a good game plan. It’s just a matter of me going out there and hitting the shots. I didn’t do such a great job on the front nine, so I hope to get off to a better start tomorrow, and I’m excited,” said Wise.

Courtenay, B.C. – Lake Elsinore, California’s Aaron Wise shot a 4-under 68 on Wednesday at Crown Isle Resort and Golf Community to take the second round lead at the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada Qualifying Tournament.

The 19-year old, currently ranked No. 6 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, carded six birdies against one double bogey, his only dropped shots of the week, to lead by four shots over Atherton, California’s Jonathan Garrick through 36 holes at Crown Isle.

“I played well,” said Wise. “I’ve got a good strategy going and I’m executing all my shots correctly. I had a costly double bogey there on 16 which I’m a little irritated about right now, but I’ll get over it and I’m looking forward to the next couple of days.”

With four wins to his name in his two seasons at Oregon, Wise has flourished in his sophomore year. This spring, he was named a semi-finalist for the Ben Hogan Award, given annually to the top player in college golf, and credited an improvement in his putting to his strong second-year performance.

“My set-up was a little off and my stroke wasn’t very good, so I was making a lot of compensations. Since I’ve gotten a little drill that shows my hip and shoulder alignment and makes sure I’m putting a good stroke on it, and that’s really helped me score a lot better because I’m making the putts I need to make,” said Wise, who owns four collegiate victories and has twice been named Pac-12 Player of the Month.

Former Ducks to have success on the Mackenzie Tour include 2015 ATB Financial Classic Daniel Miernicki and two-time winner Eugene Wong, both of whom preceded Wise at the University of Oregon. Wise said their success on the Mackenzie Tour influenced him to follow their path when he turns pro following the college season.

UXBRIDGE — It was a night to honour the best in Ontario golf as Golf Ontario, along with Wooden Sticks Golf Course, hosted the 16^th annual Ontario Golf Hall of Fame ceremony on May 4.

This year, three inductees joined the list of who’s who in Ontario golf as journalist John Gordon, professional/teaching pro Patty Howard and former Golf Association of Ontario Executive Director Dave Mills joined the Hall as the 73^rd, 74^th, and 75^th members. In addition, journalist Bill ‘Skip’ Johns was honoured with the Lorne Rubinstein Media Award.

The event began with emcee Mark Zecchino, from TSN, welcoming all guests who packed the reception room at Wooden Sticks in Uxbridge.

Golf Ontario President Chris Osborne took to the stage next to congratulate all of the individuals being honoured. “We acknowledge all of tonight’s inductees’ contributions and accomplishments in the great game of golf, and through this induction ceremony wish to perpetuate the memory of their place in golf history.”

First up was the Lorne Rubenstein Media Award. Presenting the award was none other than Rubenstein himself who was honoured to give the award to his peer Bill ‘Skip’ Johns. Johns, a journalist for close to 60 years, brought smiles and laugher to the crowd as he did his best “athlete” acceptance speech before thanking all who made the award possible for him.

The first inductee to be honoured was John Gordon. Gordon, a golf journalist for more than 30 years, was involved in many aspects of the golf industry. In addition to his contributions in print, radio, television and online journalism, Gordon also held roles with Golf Canada, the Ontario Golf Association (now Golf Ontario), the NGCOA and Clublink. Gordon also helped to form the Professional Golf Management Program at Georgian College and is a published author of eight books.

During his speech, Gordon spoke about his passion to make the game more accessible and affordable, but emphasized to people to have faith in the game and to stop and admire it for what it currently is.

Next, Patty Howard joined the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame. Howard was a multiple-time winner as a professional and went on to become a successful teaching pro. She held numerous positions in the industry, many of which were a first for females. Her accomplishments helped to pave the way for women in golf today.

Howard talked about her passion for the game and how it continues to burn even to this day. “People don’t remember what you did but rather how you made them feel,” said Howard. It was evident from the guests, including the coach bus of supporters that accompanied Howard, that she had made an impact on many people.

Last but not least, former Golf Association of Ontario (Golf Ontario) Executive Director Dave Mills took his place in the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame. Mills, who started out as a volunteer on the Ontario Golf Association Board of Directors, went on to become the association’s Executive Director and led the organization out of a period of financial instability. He spearheaded a merger with the Ontario Ladies’ Golf Association to create one of the largest golf associations in the world. To this day Mills continues to be involved with the association as a volunteer.

Mills took the opportunity to talk about his favorite memories with the association including his numerous trips to championships with junior teams and mischief the players would find themselves in.

Jordan Spieth understands his meltdown at the end of the Masters will follow him. And three weeks later, Spieth’s not quite ready to say he’s over letting a five-shot lead in the final round morph into that awkward ceremony in the Butler Cabin that ended with him slipping the green jacket on Danny Willett following an ugly and very public collapse.

Still, let’s not get carried away.

“I’m not taking it very hard,” Spieth said Tuesday, while attending a FedEx event in suburban Pittsburgh ahead of practice at Oakmont, where he will try to defend his U.S. Open title next month.

“I’ve got ladies at the grocery stores putting their hand on me and going, ‘Really praying for you; how are you doing?’ I’m like, ‘My dog didn’t die. I’ll be OK. I’ll survive.’ It happens.”

It just hadn’t really happened to Spieth during the 22-year-old’s sprint to the top of the world rankings, a dash that included a pair of major championships and a reputation as one of the game’s steadiest players as the holes dwindled and the stakes rose. In the span of 30 minutes during the final round at Augusta, it disappeared. A bogey at 10. Another at 11. That seemingly endless sequence on 12 where he hit the ball into Rae’s Creek not once but twice on his way to a quadruple bogey 7 that cost him control of the tournament.

“It was just bad timing on the wrong hole,” Spieth said. “And you know, it is what it is, and I’ll move on. If you’re in contention at a major, hopefully 50-plus times in your career, something like that is bound to happen. Just don’t let it happen again.”

Spieth endured the uncomfortable post-round ceremony with Willett, whose brilliant closing 5-under-par 67 will be forever tied with the way Spieth let it slip away. Spieth admitted “this one will hurt” in the aftermath and he’s spent the last few weeks trying to decompress and get ready for the daunting test that awaits at Oakmont in June.

So Spieth did what most early 20-somethings with time to burn and money to spend did: he went on a well-appointed Spring Break. Spieth joined Rickie Fowler, Smylie Kaufman and Justin Thomas for a getaway at a tropical resort that Fowler chronicled via Snapchat, a vacation that included a little golf and a lot of unwinding.

“We were having fun, we were relaxed,” Spieth said. “We were able to play golf and golf was kind of secondary to the relaxation part of the trip.”

It will be back to work on Wednesday when Spieth takes a long look at Oakmont, which is prepping to host its ninth U.S. Open and first since 2007, before heading to Florida for next week’s Players Championship. Spieth plans to treat his preparation for the rugged test in the Western Pennsylvania hills much the same way he got ready for Chambers Bay last summer, when he edged Dustin Johnson and Louis Oosthuizen by a stroke. Spieth will try to get a feel for Oakmont this week then arrive early in June for a far different kind of test than the one found at the three other majors.

Angel Cabrera captured the Open in its last visit to Oakmont with a four-round total of 5 over par. Compare that to the 18 under par Spieth posted while winning at Augusta in 2015 or even the 5-under he put up at Chambers Bay. It will take nerves to survive and regardless of what that stretch at the Masters looked like, Spieth isn’t worried about his confidence being rattled should he be in the mix on Father’s Day.

“Our team can draw on the wins, and that’s what we’re going to do,” he said. “We’ve now had a chance to win coming down the stretch in six majors and we’ve won two of them, including the last five and 2014 Masters. So that’s still a pretty good percentage, if you’re in contention six times, you win two of them, a third of the time. Considering my age, and hopefully with continued good health and continued improved play, if we keep that percentage up, we’ll be all right.”

DULUTH, Ga. – Former British Open champion Stewart Cink says he is taking a break from golf after learning his wife has breast cancer.

Cink posted the news Tuesday on Twitter, saying the family is still in the process of figuring out “what she is fighting, and the uncertainty is difficult.”

He prefaced the short statement on Twitter by saying that his wife, Lisa, has been his biggest supporter since he was 15 and “it’s now time for me to return the favor.”

The statement says: “In order to assist Lisa in meeting the challenge, I will be stepping away from competitive golf until the circumstances improve for her. Hopefully that day will come quickly.”

Since I was 15 years old, @lisacink has been my biggest supporter. It’s now time for me to return the favor. pic.twitter.com/4mVRMsmfL4

— Stewart Cink (@stewartcink) May 3, 2016

Cink’s biggest victory was the 2009 British Open when he beat Tom Watson in a playoff at Turnberry.

Courtenay, B.C. – Barrie, Ont.’s Eric Hawerchuk shot an 8-under 64 on Tuesday at Crown Isle Resort and Golf Community to take the first round lead at the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada Qualifying Tournament.

The 26-year old, whose father is NHL Hall of Famer Dale Hawerchuk, was bogey-free with eight birdies to lead by one over Lake Elsinore, California’s Aaron Wise after one round in Courtenay.

“I played smart and had a couple big up-and-downs, par saves that kept me going to be honest. A lot of the putts fell in, and it was a great day,” said Hawerchuk.

After missing his card at Q-School in 2014, Hawerchuk said he took a hard look in the mirror and began making changes to his game with the goal of becoming a competitive player on the path to the PGA TOUR.

“I came two years ago and I realized I wasn’t ready to play at this level. You see how good everyone is, and I took last year to just kind of work on some things that I learned, and it seems to be paying off so far. Hopefully I can just keep that going,” said Hawerchuk.

With three rounds to go, the former Central Connecticut State Blue Devil said he was still focused on competing through the week and not getting ahead of himself despite his red hot opening round.

“This is a huge bonus,” said Hawerchuk. “I was just trying to get in there, shoot a few under and be right in the mix, so to jump out to a nice start like today – I’m not going to really change anything, but it does help my mindset going forward.”

 “I was just having fun, to be honest. I had my brother-in-law on the bag, and just the stuff I’ve been working on the last few months with my coaches has been paying off. I’m just trying to be a kid again, trying to be an artist out there,” said Fink.

Carlsbad, CA – PUMA Golf announced today the signing of Canadian golfer Adam Svensson, who is entering his first full season as a professional golfer with full status on the Web.com Tour. Svensson will don PUMA Golf apparel and accessories on-course throughout the 2016 golf season.

“Adam is a great fit for PUMA Golf,” said Dave Burgess, Director of Marketing at COBRA PUMA GOLF Canada. “He has proven his skills on the course and has a cool style and swagger. We are thrilled to be adding him to our Tour team.”

Svensson, 22, won nine of his last 14 events individually for Barry University in Miami. He is a two-time NCAA First Team All-American, named Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year in 2014 and received the Phil Mickelson Award as most outstanding freshman in 2013. In his first year as a professional, Svensson set the record for lowest scoring average in the PGA TOUR era of the Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada with an impressive 67.67 average and won four professional events including lapping the field by seven shots at Web.com Tour Final Stage Q-School.

Svensson, who is a Team Canada alumni, will be wearing pieces from the brands’ Spring Summer ’16 Collection featuring new cooling and warming technologies to equip golfers for changing weather conditions. The line boasts re-energized essentials, elevated and sophisticated details, a balanced color palate to suit the style of any golfer.

“I’ve always been a fan of PUMA Golf and I’m excited to become an ambassador for the company. Their ability to move the needle to make golf very lifestyle focused is pretty cool,” Svensson says. “A big part of success as a pro is feeling good in your gear and I have no doubt PUMA will contribute to my success.”

For more information on the entire PUMA Golf collection visit www.cobragolf.com/pumagolf.

AVONDALE, La. – Brian Stuard a eu raison de Jamie Lovemark au deuxième trou de prolongation de la Classique Zurich pour mettre la main sur son premier titre sur le circuit de la PGA.

Stuard n’a pas commis de bogey tout au long du tournoi disputé sur le très long (7425 verges) parcours du TPC Louisiana, noyé par près de 115 millimètres de pluie au cours du tournoi. Des délais en raison des conditions météo jeudi, samedi et dimanche ont non seulement forcé les organisateurs à repousser la prolongation à lundi, mais également à raccourcir le tournoi à 54 trous.

Lovemark, Stuard et Byeong-Hun An ont tous trois amorcé la prolongation avec un pointage cumulatif de 15 coups sous la normale.

An a trébuché sur le premier trou de prolongation tandis que Lovemark est tombé au deuxième. pendant ce temps, Stuard a poursuivi son chemin, inébranlable, comme tout au long du tournoi. Il s’est pratiquement assuré de la victoire en en envoyant son coup d’approche sur 160 verges à environ deux pieds et demie de la coupe, pour un coup roulé facile et un birdie.

Stuard est ainsi devenu le septième joueur à signer sa première victoire en carrière au tournoi disputé en banlieue de La Nouvelle-Orléans au cours des 11 dernières années.