PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Charles Howell III saw a news blurb that the Masters is a month away, and the Augusta native played Thursday like he wants to be there.

In strong gusts that didn’t subside until the final few hours of daylight, Howell played bogey-free and picked up two big birdies on his way to a 4-under 67 and a share of the lead with Keegan Bradley and Ken Duke in the Valspar Championship.

“I was impressed I got away with no bogeys,” Howell said. “It was nice to get off to a good start here on a place like this. I’m not sure what the rest of the week will hold, but to actually play a nice round on a tough golf course is good for my confidence.”

Jordan Spieth wasn’t sure what to make of his day.

The defending champion had to get up-and-down to save bogey four times on his opening seven holes, and he never recovered. Spieth made only one birdie, played the final 11 holes with 10 pars and a bogey and wound up with a 76. He was nine shots behind and in danger of missing the cut for the second time in three tournaments.

“I got off to a poor start and I was behind the eight ball with gusty winds on a tough golf course,” Spieth said.

Duke also played bogey-free and made birdies on the two par 3s on the back nine that were into the wind and over the water. Bradley was the only player to reach 5 under on a day that featured 25 mph gusts, which seem stronger because the Copperhead course at Innisbrook is demanding in no wind at all.

Howell was in the penultimate group, and the wind laid down for most of the back nine. His play was solid throughout, however, particularly the 4-iron into a left pin that settled a foot from the cup on the par-3 eighth. He picked up another bonus birdie on the par-5 11th with a 45-foot putt.

Howell, perhaps more than any other player from the Augusta area, is linked to the Masters.

He hasn’t played the Masters since he tied for 19th in 2012, and Georgia is on his mind as the first major of the year gets closer.

“Always this time of the year, the Masters’ carrot looms,” Howell said. “When April comes around it has a different feel – at least for me – than the other majors. So when the Masters comes around and I’m not in it, then it’s a bit of a wake-up call or a kick in the rear to somehow make one last push to try to get in it.”

It’s not his desire alone, and Howell realizes that.

He was happy to see Augusta resident Vaughn Taylor qualify by winning at Pebble Beach, and Kevin Kisner (Aiken, South Carolina) qualify through a sensational 2015. He knows that the Masters means as much to Scott Brown (Aiken) as him.

“It’s not like it’s more special to me than anyone else. Everyone feels that way about it,” Howell said. “But yeah, it’s such a great event. It would be nice to somehow find a way to get there.”

Howell likely would have to win a tournament because he is No. 128 in the world, though he did consider one alternate route.

“I may send my application in for the Drive, Chip and Putt,” he said with a laugh. “Maybe I can find a spot in Tampa to try to qualify. Just to get on the grounds with golf clubs in my hands would be great.”

Bradley also needed a round like this. He has missed the cut in four of his five starts this year, and recently switched to a new swing coach. Bradley’s last victory was at Firestone in August 2012. He has fallen to No. 88 in the world.

“It’s been tough,” Bradley said. “It’s no fun playing poorly out here. I see all my buddies up there doing well and it feels not fun to feel like you’re on the outside looking in. So I’ve been working the hardest in my career.”

It was hard work at Innisbrook, especially in the morning when the wind was at its strongest and only four out of 72 players managed to break 70. Several players took advantage of calmer conditions late in the day.

Chesson Hadley was one shot behind with a 68.

Chez Reavie was bogey-free and joined Charley Hoffman and Greg Yates in the group at 69, while Martin Kaymer and Henrik Stenson were among those at 70.

Only two dozen players broke par, while five players failed to break 80.

“Just keep hanging on,” Howell said. “This golf course is so difficult and there’s trouble everywhere, and I don’t expect tomorrow to be a bogey-free day. Pars are good scores.”

Canadian scores:

Rickie Fowler came through in the clutch again, and this one paid off handsomely.

Fowler was among several PGA Tour players who took part in the Cigar Aficionado-Wine Spectator Pro-Am on Monday at Old Palm Golf Club for Ernie Els and his “Els for Autism.” When it was over, all the players got one shot on the 19th hole to win $1 million for the charity if they made a hole-in-one.

According to Golf Channel, Fowler wasn’t wearing golf shoes and he had to borrow a wedge from Luke Donald.

The shot went in the hole, and the crowd erupted. The wild scene of high-fives ended with Els hoisting Fowler as if he had just made the game-winner. Which he did.

Fowler said on Twitter, “One of the coolest moments in my career no question!! So cool & pumped what we able to help raise yesterday!!”

DORAL, Fla. –  Adam Scott faced a daunting challenge, a six-shot deficit with 13 holes remaining on a course that was playing tougher than it had at any point this week.

And after overcoming that, he needed to survive two brushes with big trouble on the final hole to finish the job.

Scott won for the second straight week, shooting a final-round 69 to win the Cadillac Championship by one shot over Bubba Watson. It’s the second win for Scott in a World Golf Championships event, his 13th career win on the PGA Tour and he now hasn’t finished lower than second in any of his last three starts.

“Everything fell the right way for me today,” Scott said.

Scott finished the week at 12-under 276. Watson (68) was alone in second, and Danny Willett (69) and Rory McIlroy (74) were tied for third, two shots back. Phil Mickelson (70) was alone in fifth at 9 under and Jimmy Walker shot the round of the day, a 6-under 66 to finish alone in sixth at 8 under.

With course owner Donald Trump popping in on Sunday, arriving by helicopter and greeting fans as he drove around in a cart, there was plenty of drama away from the fairways and greens.

Scott ensured there was a ton on the grass as well, after two double-bogeys in a three-hole span on the front side seemed to send his round into a tailspin. That is, until he got hot at just the right time with birdies on six of his next nine holes after the second double.

“It was such a challenge out there today,” Scott said. “I knew if I could just get a couple before the turn, maybe I’ll have a chance.”

It’s anyone’s guess if Scott will get a chance to defend the title at Doral in 2017. General Motors’ sponsorship agreement with the event ends this week and with no sponsor, there’s no tournament.

“Our hope is that the future could allow us to stay here and continue to build the tournament,” PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said Sunday afternoon, meeting with reporters before sitting down privately with Trump to talk about the tournament’s future. “But we’ll have more to say about that after we do a full evaluation of our performance this year.”

Count Watson, who has been second or third at Doral four times in the last five years, among those who want Doral to stay on the schedule, as it has been since 1962.

“If they move it I’ll be sad,” Watson said, “because I’m pretty good around this place.”

That he is, but Scott – despite walking a tightrope the last three holes – was a bit better.

He saved par on the par-4 16th, after his drive went over the green and nestled in a bunker. His second shot was dreadful, finding a patch of greenside rough. From there he popped a chip 8 feet past the hole, then made the putt for par.

The trouble only got worse from there.

His tee ball on 17 found a bunker while Watson, on the green ahead, made birdie to get within one. Scott eventually saved par, headed to the final hole with that one-shot lead – and put his tee shot in the right rough, a skinny palm tree impeding his path to the green. So he went left, around the tree but toward the water, and that shot somehow caught enough thick grass on a sharp slope to stop before getting wet.

“I was so lucky for it to stay up inside the hazard line,” Scott said. “When you’re that lucky, you better get them up and down.”

That’s exactly what he did. Scott chipped to 6 feet, made the par putt and moments later knew the win was his.

“I can’t believe I’ve won back-to-back weeks,” Scott said. “To win a World Golf Championship is huge again.”

Watson made eagle at the par-5 8th to get into real contention Sunday, but his big mistake was a bogey on the par-4 14th. He couldn’t get up-and-down from a greenside bunker, Scott made birdie on the same hole just a few minutes later, and that two-shot swing proved critical.

“I gave it a good effort,” Watson said. “What I’m working on in my head is working out. Right now, I’ve got the energy and the mind-set to play some decent golf, so very positive, very happy about the week and what took place.”

DORAL, Fla. – Donald Trump’s helicopter landed on the course bearing his name, and before long, the Republican presidential front-runner was busy autographing a woman’s shirt, driving a golf cart through throngs of screaming fans and boasting about how he hosts one of the elite golf tournaments in the world.

For now, anyway.

Trump’s arrival at the Cadillac Championship was splashy, as has been the case plenty of times before at golf tournaments he hosts. What remains unclear is if there will be a tournament for him to even visit at his Doral venue next year, whether he’s living in the White House at that time or not.

“It would be a bad thing for golf,” Trump said when asked about the possibility of the event leaving Doral.

It might happen anyway. Sunday marked the final day that the Cadillac Championship at Trump National will be played under its existing sponsorship agreement, and neither Trump nor the PGA Tour can say with any degree of certainty that a World Golf Championships event – or even a regular tour stop – will be back in 2017.

General Motors’ contract to present the event was ending Sunday, and Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem made clear that sponsorship for Doral going forward is a major question.

“We have moved out of markets before, but not very often,” Finchem said. “And usually, we look at the situation as to how can we improve it. We’re not looking to leave. … Having said that, we have to have sponsorship to conduct a tournament.”

Finchem and Trump were meeting Sunday to discuss how this year’s event went, and to talk about future options. No final decisions were expected, and probably won’t come for some time. Trump said he has business relationships with Cadillac, and reminded reporters that he has a contract with the tour to host at Doral for several more years.

“Everybody wants to be at Doral and the Blue Monster and I’m sure they’re talking to other people now about sponsorship,” Trump said. “But Cadillac has been terrific.”

Trump’s relationship with golf has seemed tenuous at times since the businessman became a politician. His comments last year about Mexican immigrants led to the PGA of America canceling its Grand Slam of Golf at Trump’s course in Los Angeles. And it’s fair to question if new potential sponsors would want to commit to an event at Trump’s course without knowing how his campaign will play out.

“The presidential campaign has a few months left, and I suspect that whatever happens, this won’t be front and center what we’re talking about next year,” Finchem said. “But that’s just the nature of politics in the United States.”

Trump’s arrival led to an uproar Sunday.

The last groups were about a half-hour from teeing off when the helicopter bearing his name touched down behind some palm trees, and Trump quickly commandeered a golf cart to make his way through some fans and to the driving range – all the while wearing a white cap emblazoned with his “Make America Great Again” slogan.

Those “Quiet please” signs marshals use on the course were no match for the Trumpmania going on behind the grandstands.

“Donald was making a racket there on 18,” Justin Rose said, noting the noise he was hearing on the course as he was trying to finish his round.

Trump was asked if he would self-sponsor a tournament at Doral, and said he hasn’t considered such a move.

“I know they’re talking to other people,” Trump said. “It’s the most important tournament down here. It’s got the best venue in the country and it’s 50 years of great tournaments.”

He said the last time he played was about two weeks ago at his course in West Palm Beach, Florida, with LPGA player Lexi Thompson for nine holes. She shot 32, he said. Trump declined to offer his score, but said a Trump presidency would be good for the game.

“I love golf. I love playing it. It’s a very important game,” Trump said. “It’s a great game. You can learn so much. You make so many great friends by playing it. But I will say this: It won’t be good for my game, but it’ll be great for golf.”

DORAL, Fla. – Rory McIlroy came into the Cadillac Championship insisting that everything about his game is solid right now, and that his ability to contend rested solely on his mental game.

His mind must be right, because he played a mistake-free third round at Doral on Saturday.

McIlroy made four birdies and no bogeys in the third round on the Blue Monster, his 4-under 68 getting him to 12 under for the week and three shots ahead of Adam Scott and defending champion Dustin Johnson with 18 holes left in the first World Golf Championships event of the season.

“I just played a really solid round of golf,” McIlroy said.

If he wins Sunday, McIlroy would go over $30 million in career PGA Tour earnings, and could get handed the trophy by the course owner himself. Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said he will attend Sunday’s final round, though it’s unclear how visible he will be or how much of the day he’ll spend at Doral.

“I think it’s Rory’s to lose, really,” said Danny Willett, who shot 72 and is in a group five shots off the pace. “We’re going to have to go out there and play clever and play aggressive when we can, and hopefully we can knock a few birdies off and post a good number.”

McIlroy’s made nine birdies and nine bogeys or worse in two rounds last week at The Honda Classic, which is why his preparation for Doral could start two days early with a missed cut there.

At Doral, he hasn’t been flawless, but close enough. McIlroy’s last bogey was on the second hole in his second round.

In 34 holes since, it’s been 11 birdies and 23 pars, fueling his climb atop the leaderboard. He took the lead with a birdie at the par-4 fifth, one of only eight made on that hole Saturday. And he escaped brushes with the sand on each of his last two holes, keeping his mistake-free streak intact.

“I’ve seen Rory play some great golf,” Scott said. “I think he’s going to be very satisfied with that round. Looked like he was under total control.”

McIlroy’s tee ball at the par-4 17th found a bunker – with the wind picking up a bit – so he simply knocked his second onto the green and two-putted from 45 feet. And his approach from the middle of the fairway on 18 landed in a greenside bunker, but he knocked in a testy 6-footer for par to cap the round.

“My first bogey-free round of the year,” McIlroy said. “To do it in a round like this is very pleasing.”

Johnson gave himself a chance to end his day with a great par, then missed a 4-footer. After spraying his tee shot way right, Johnson punched out and then knocked a wedge close. But he missed the par try and fell to 9 under for the tournament, 1 under for the round.

Johnson rallied from five shots back in the final round to win last year at Doral. This time, his deficit is only three.

“Anything’s possible,” Johnson said. “With this golf course, there’s trouble on just about every hole, so I just need to go out and keep playing like I’m playing. I feel like I’m playing really well. Today I missed a couple short putts and didn’t really hole any putts and still shot 1 under on a tough day. So I’m pleased with that.”

Willett, Bubba Watson (71) and Phil Mickelson (70) are tied for fourth, five shots off the lead. World No. 1 Jordan Spieth struggled again, his round of 73 leaving him at 2 under for the week and tied for 17th place.

Spieth played with Justin Thomas, who followed up a 66 on Friday with a 78 on Saturday.

“A rough day for us both,” Thomas said.

DORAL, Fla. – A rare instance of Adam Scott seeming less than pleased Friday came after his first putt on the par-4 16th, when he miscalculated the speed and left the 30-footer well short.

Of course, that was after he drove the green on the 315-yard hole and had to merely settle for a two-putt birdie.

Otherwise, there wasn’t much for Scott to dislike during the second round of the Cadillac Championship. His 6-under round of 66 got him to 10 under for the tournament and put last week’s winner of The Honda Classic two shots clear of Rory McIlroy and defending champion Dustin Johnson at the midway point of the first World Golf Championships event of the season.

“Overall, it was a lot of good stuff,” Scott said. “Enough quality shots and enough quality putts to negate a couple of mistakes out there, but they can easily happen on this golf course. So I’m glad there was enough of the good stuff to keep me up on top and kind of setting the pace after halfway.”

Scott made eight birdies, including three straight on holes 15, 16 and 17 to strengthen his grip on the lead.

“I’m probably a little more relaxed this week leading going into the weekend than if I hadn’t won last week,” Scott said. “A 36-hole lead doesn’t mean that much, unless it’s by about 10. I could tee off tomorrow and not be leading. I’m going to have to play a good couple of days and try to keep moving in the right direction while the conditions are allowing us to.”

He’s right – with relatively gentle breezes, the Blue Monster wasn’t exactly defenseless but scores were there to be had Friday, as in the opening round. There were 25 rounds where a player went under 70 at Doral last year; so far this year, the count is already at 21 with the weekend left to go.

Johnson shot a flawless 64, eight birdies and no dropped shots on the way to the best round of the day. McIlroy shot a 65 for his share of second place after two rounds, and Danny Willett (66) was alone in fourth at 7 under.

“I think the golf course is fantastic,” Johnson said. “It’s in great shape. The greens are perfect. It’s not an easy golf course.”

McIlroy announced his arrival with a four-hole barrage of birdies on the front side, but the catalyst to all that, he said, was what came immediately before that streak. Going with a left-hand-low grip this week on the greens, McIlroy made a testy 7-footer to save par at the par-3 fourth hole – and that’s when the run of birdies started.

“There was a lot of big momentum putts in there that I have not been holing,” McIlroy said. “So to see those drop today and to be as comfortable as I was, it feels really good and obviously I’m very happy with where I’m at going into the weekend.”

Phil Mickelson got to 9 under at one point, leading by three – until the two shortest holes on the course led to his undoing.

Mickelson three-putted from 55 feet for bogey on the 191-yard 13th, and made an enormous blunder at the 139-yard 15th by putting his tee ball into the water. That led to double-bogey, the only one made on the hole all day and essentially costing him nearly 2 1-2 strokes against the rest of the field. Mickelson made a 5; on average, everyone else made 2.68.

“I just kind of lost my train of thought,” Mickelson said. “I’ll be fresh and ready for the weekend. I feel like I’m driving the ball extremely well and my iron game is sharp. And even though that back nine wasn’t what I wanted, it was kind of an anomaly. It’s going to be a good weekend.”

PONTE VEDRA BEACH and DAYTONA BEACH, FL – The PGA TOUR and the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) announced that they have formalized their longstanding cooperative relationship by entering into a long-term, written strategic alliance agreement designed to further promote the growth of golf.  This partnership between the leading men’s and women’s professional golf tours will include areas such as schedule coordination, joint marketing programs, domestic television representation, digital media and exploring the potential development of joint events.

“From our collaboration in bringing golf back as an Olympic sport as joint members of the International Golf Federation to our cooperation in helping to grow the game of golf as part of the World Golf Foundation, our two organizations have had a long history of working together for the common good of our sport,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem.  “Extending our relationship with the LPGA into these new areas is a natural extension of this work and collaboration.”

“We believe the PGA TOUR has significant expertise in the areas that we will focus on together and working more closely with them carries with it the very real potential of positively impacting our members, our tournaments, and our ability to grow our sport around the world,” said LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan.  “We look forward to working with the PGA TOUR team to deliver a positive impact for our sport.”

Both organizations emphasized that while the alliance strengthens their relationship and the potential benefits of working together in these various areas are attractive for the overall growth of the sport, it involves no formal financial investment or transfer of ownership or control.  Both parties remain wholly separate and independent organizations.

DORAL, Fla. – Phil Mickelson’s scores from Doral over the past two years clearly suggested that the redesigned Blue Monster wasn’t completely to his liking.

He had to re-learn a course that he played for more than 20 years, and indicated Thursday that he finally has the new Doral figured out.

Mickelson shot a 5-under 67 on Thursday in the opening round of the Cadillac Championship, the first World Golf Championships event of the year. Seeking his first win since the British Open in 2013, Mickelson made seven birdies and finished the day one shot back of leaders Scott Piercy and Marcus Fraser.

“There is a bit of a learning curve on some of the contours and where you have to go and where you want to go and the best place to be,” Mickelson said. “It’s not like I came in here weeks before and mapped it out like a major. You’re here only the week of. But this is our third year here now and it continues to get better each year.”

Fraser had seven birdies before his lone bogey of the day, and Piercy also got to 7 under at one point before settling for his 66.

Mickelson made bogey only twice, immediately erasing each with a birdie on the following hole, and the 67 was nearly six full shots better than his average round score at Doral in his previous two visits.

His best round on the Blue Monster in 2014 was a 69, and his low score at Doral last year was 71.

“It was a good day,” said Mickelson, who feigned disbelief when his chip on the par-5 8th – his 17th of the day – stopped inches from the hole, leaving him a tap-in birdie. “I hit a lot of good shots, made some good putts and just drove it well, enjoyed the day. It was a good day.”

Danny Willett, Adam Scott, Jason Dufner and Charley Hoffman were all two shots back of Piercy, each carding 68s. World No. 1 Jordan Spieth was in a group another shot back, three off the pace at 3 under, and said that even on a relatively calm day by Doral weather standards, it felt like a grind.

“It always is here,” Spieth said. “And this would be a day that should play about as easy as it possibly can with just a 5- to 10-mile-an-hour breeze. The standard wind here I think. Still, the scores aren’t extremely low.”

Spieth was in a featured group, with world No. 2 Jason Day and No. 3 Rory McIlroy with him. McIlroy shot 1 under, Day finished at even par.

“Human error, unfortunately,” Day said. “I wish I could hit it in the centre of the golf club all the time but sometimes I’m like an amateur and I hit it in the parts where we’re not supposed to. But that’s how it is.”

Piercy spent eight hours on the range Monday working on a change to his backswing and saw immediate results, making seven birdies in his first 11 holes. Being atop a World Golf Championships leaderboard on Sunday is far different than on a Thursday, but it’s a most positive sign for Piercy – a three-time winner on tour including the RBC Canadian Open – who shot better than 66 only once in his first 24 stroke-play rounds in WGC events.

“We all know we’re trying to beat those guys week-in, week-out,” Piercy said. “They have proved it. I haven’t proven it week-in, week-out, but when my game’s there I’m pretty decent. We all know they are there. They are looking at my name today. So maybe they will do it tomorrow.”

Past winners at Doral struggled a bit. Defending champion Dustin Johnson shot an even-par 72, putting him in a tie for 28th. And 2014 winner Patrick Reed could get nothing going, his 5-over 77 beating only three other players.

Mickelson won on the previous version of the Blue Monster, a course he knew as well as anyone. And Thursday showed he’s got a chance to do just fine on the redesign as well.

“I’m not going to complain,” Mickelson said.

DORAL, Fla. – Rory McIlroy is shaking up his putting technique by going to a cross-handed grip for the Cadillac Championship, and he plans to stick with it.

McIlroy posted a video on Instagram that showed him putting with the left hand low, and then he confirmed Wednesday in his news conference that it was worth a try. He said he typically practices that way to make sure he keeps the right hand from influencing the putting stroke.

Put some good work in the last few days, ready for the blue monster this week!

A video posted by Rory McIlroy (@rorymcilroy) on Mar 2, 2016 at 3:46am PST

“It’s a drill that I’ve always done,” he said. “And I’ve putted a lot just with my left hand. It’s one of those things where the drill started to feel a little bit better than the real thing, so I’m just going to stick with it.”

The catalyst for change was the Honda Classic, where McIlroy missed the cut with rounds of 72-72.

He said there were a couple of putts in the second round that he knew he was going to miss before he even made contact because his right hand was too active.

“So it was, ‘I need to do something here,'” he said. “I was sort of playing around with a few different grips on the putting green over the weekend. This one felt more natural to me because I’ve done it before and I do it quite a lot when I’m just practicing in drills. I thought, ‘Why not give it a go?'”

McIlroy plays the opening two rounds at Trump National Doral with Jordan Spieth and Jason Day, the two players ahead of him in the world ranking. Spieth also putts with his left hand low, and he is regarded among the best medium-length putters in golf.

McIlroy said he used the cross-handed grip at times during his rookie year on the European Tour in 2008. Since then, he has won 18 times around the world, including four majors. The Masters is just over a month away, the one major McIlroy needs to complete the career Grand Slam.

It sounded as though he would be taking that grip to Augusta National.

“I feel like it’s something I’m going to stick with regardless of what the outcome is tomorrow or this week or next week,” he said. “I really do feel like it helps me put a stroke on it that I want to. It’s a great feeling. I feel like it gives my putting stroke a bit more of a better rhythm, as well, a better flow. Look, if it doesn’t work right from the get-go tomorrow, you’re not going to see me on Friday morning putting conventional again. It’s something I’m going to stick with for a while.”

DORAL, Fla. – Tiger Woods says he is starting to feel better, though he is not sure when he will return to competitive golf.

Woods released a statement Wednesday saying he has been chipping and putting at home in Florida as his recovery from back surgeries progresses. He says he and his son, Charlie, are competing in three-hole chipping contests.

Woods has not played in a tournament since August, and he has not won since August 2013. He says, “I have a lot of work ahead of me.”

Woods will appear later Wednesday at a news conference near Houston to announce the opening of a 10-hole short course designed for families.