ORLANDO, Fla. – Morgan Hoffmann’s day began with news that his 97-year-old grandmother died Thursday morning. It ended with his first lead on the PGA Tour.

Hoffman began his round with a 35-foot birdie putt on No. 10 and finished it with a 9-iron that touched the hole before stopping inches away for birdie. He also holed a bunker shot for eagle on the par-5 sixth, leading to a 6-under 66 and a one-shot lead in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

It all was a lot to chew on for the 25-year-old Hoffmann, who cooks his own meals to eat on the golf course (bison steak was for lunch Thursday).

“Mentally, I’m in kind of a weird state right now,” he said. “My grandma passed away this morning, so I’m just pretty chilled out there and loving life right now. Just wish my family the best at home. My whole family texted me and said, `Nanny is playing golf with pop up there,’ which was pretty cool.”

Hoffmann hopes to attend a memorial service for Dorothy Lionetti in Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday night. It should be a short trip considering Hoffmann pilots his own plane that he recently bought from his buddy David Booth, who plays left wing for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

He was inspired to be a pilot after meeting with the tournament host during the Palmer Cup in 2009.

Hoffman, clearly, is not the garden variety PGA Tour player.

“I have a lot of stuff you guys didn’t ask,” he said with a perfect smile.

Not to be forgotten was his golf. He had a one-shot lead over five players, including Ian Poulter and Kevin Na. The group at 68 included Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson and Brandt Snedeker.

Poulter, who made an eagle from just off the 16th green, had his own distraction. His 3-year-old son was taken to the hospital Wednesday night with a low oxygen level and pneumonia. It was a long night, with a bit of a scare, but Joshua was doing better Thursday morning.

“I suppose it was a blessing, last tee time off,” said Poulter, who was in the afternoon group of starters.

Rory McIlroy hit 17 greens in regulation in his Bay Hill debut and one-putted only two greens, including a 15-foot birdie on the 18th for a 70. McIlroy two-putted from 18 feet for birdie on No. 6, and his lone bogey came with an approach into the water on the par-5 16th. He twirled the club when he saw the splash, though it stayed in his hands.

In his third American event this year, the world’s No. 1 player still hasn’t broken 70. But he’s getting there.

“Seeing signs of my game that I like,” McIlroy said. “Another three days of hopefully solid golf and try and get into contention, and that will put me in a good place going into Augusta.”

Hoffmann also is headed to Augusta National for the first time, courtesy of making the Tour Championship last year on the strength of a pair of top 10s in the FedEx Cup playoffs. He just hasn’t followed up on his finish at the start of this season, with no top 10s in nine tournaments.

But after missing the cut at Innisbrook, he spent 12 hours at home in south Florida hitting balls and trying to hit cut shots to stop the aggravating two-way miss. The work appears to be paying off. He missed only two fairways and four greens, none by a great length.

Twelve hours on the range can be exhausting, and when asked if he had at least stopped for lunch, Hoffmann shared his culinary preferences.

He cooks the night before and packs six small meals to eat during the day. The only thing missing is the cutlery, even for a bison steak. “Barehanded it,” he said. He limits his carbohydrates to brown rice and sweet potatoes, along with some vegetables. On the road, he picks hotels with a small kitchen.

“I just figure it’s better than eating candy bars or protein bars,” he said. “I have real food out there.”

Hoffman, who went to Oklahoma State, first met Palmer at the 2009 Palmer Cup at Cherry Hills. The King shared the importance of a legible autograph (he worked on that) and his affection for flying. Palmer was among the first golfers to fly his own plane and only gave up the controls four years ago.

So it felt only fitting that his first lead after any round on tour would come at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “Arnie has inspired me very heavily since 2009 when I played the Palmer Cup at Cherry Hills, and we talked for about an hour about flying. He’s inspired me to get my pilot’s license and fly myself to tournaments, which I’m now doing. It’s pretty cool, and he’s been a big inspiration in my life.”

Three-shots back of Hoffman with a share of 18th is David Hearn. The Brantford, Ont., native opened with a 3-under par 69 and was the low Canuck thru 18 holes.

Graham Delaet is tied for 93rd after a 2-over 74, while Nick Taylor had a 76 (+4) and has a share of 107th.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Rory McIlroy is adding a new wrinkle to his preparations for the Masters.

McIlroy makes his debut in the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Thursday, his final tournament before he tries to complete the career Grand Slam and win a third straight major at Augusta National in three weeks.

He began playing the Masters in 2009, and this is the fourth pre-Augusta schedule he has tried.

“I thought I’d just mix it up a little bit this year,” McIlroy said Wednesday. “Play here and then I’ll have a couple weeks off to get ready for Augusta. Back in `11, I took three weeks off before the Masters. It worked pretty well – for 63 holes, not quite 72. So just trying to adopt a similar approach.”

That was the closest the 25-year-old McIlroy has been to a green jacket. He had a four-shot lead going into the final round in 2011 only to shoot 80 in the final round. Then again, he tried that same schedule – three weeks off before the Masters – in 2012 and tied for 40th.

He twice has played one week before the Masters at the Shell Houston Open (2010, 2014), and in 2013 played Houston and San Antonio before the Masters.

The search continues, though every player has a different idea how to get ready.

Bay Hill is a popular spot this year. The world’s No. 1 player at the Arnold Palmer Invitational for the first time is joined by three others from the top five in the world ranking in Henrik Stenson, Adam Scott and Jason Day. The tournament had all of the top five until Bubba Watson withdrew on Wednesday because a childhood friend died unexpectedly and he wanted to be at the funeral.

McIlroy is more interested in his game being ready. Even though he won in Dubai and was runner-up in Abu Dhabi at the start of the year, his return to America hasn’t been glowing. He missed the cut at the Honda Classic and somehow got into the top 10 at Doral, though he was eight shots behind the winner, Dustin Johnson, and still hasn’t broken 70 in his six rounds on the PGA Tour this year.

Longtime swing coach Michael Bannon came over from Northern Ireland late last week and they worked together for five days.

“That was sort of an unplanned visit,” McIlroy said. “The last five days have been really good work with him, just one-on-one, no one else around. It’s been really good. So feeling much better about my game now than I was walking off Doral 10 days ago.”

And there has been time for fun and relaxation – at Augusta National, no less.

McIlroy took his father, Gerry, there last week for a two-day trip that resembled a father-son outing with a few powerful people – Augusta National members Ed Hurley and Jimmy Dunne, along with the Manning clan of NFL fame.

He described it as “100 percent fun, zero percent serious.”

“I didn’t hit any extra balls. I played one ball the whole time,” McIlroy said. “Really wanted to go and enjoy it with my dad. That was what the whole thing was about. There’s four father-and-sons, and we had a great time.”

He said he played “pretty well” the first day, without mentioning a score. For a four-time major champion, “pretty well” can mean just about anything. McIlroy wasn’t saying, except that it was in the 60s but not the course record.

The highlight might have been off the golf course. McIlroy was in the gym at 6 a.m. Friday at the club when he got some unexpected company – a pair of Super Bowl MVPs. First, Tom Brady came in. Fifteen minutes later, Peyton Manning showed up.

“That was my time to leave,” McIlroy said.

Along with being a little in awe, McIlroy was impressed. The Masters is three weeks away. Training camp for the NFL is four months away.

“It’s their offseason,” McIlroy said. “I guess for me it was to see all those guys in the gym before their season starts and they’re so dedicated and committed to what they do, especially those two guys, Peyton and Tom. They’re both in their mid-30s and they want to prolong their careers as much as they can.

“To see them putting so much into it even after 15 successful years … it was great for me to see. It was inspirational in some ways.”

He said there was some football talk, mostly about all the trades that were going on.

“It was nice to be in that little world for a couple of days and experience it,” he said.

He gets back to his world Thursday at Bay Hill, with the Masters just around the corner.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Jordan Spieth and his world-class short game came up big in a playoff victory Sunday at the Valspar Championship.

Spieth capped off an afternoon of back-nine charges, clutch putts and unseemly par saves by making a 30-foot birdie putt on the third extra hole of a playoff at Innisbrook to beat Ryder Cup teammates Patrick Reed and Sean O’Hair.

“A crazy back nine,” said Spieth, who won for the second time in his PGA Tour career and fourth time worldwide to reach a career-high No. 6 in the world.

The 21-year-old Spieth was three shots behind with six holes to play when he made two birdies to catch a faltering Ryan Moore, and then saved par on his final three holes for a 2-under 69 to join the playoff. And these par saves were not what anyone would call routine.

With his right foot in the bunker and his left foot on grass well above the ball in the sand, he blasted out to 3 feet on the 16th. From deep rough on a hill, he hit a flop shot to a short pin to 6 feet to stay tied for the lead. And he holed a 12-foot par putt on the 18th that fell in the left side of the cup.

Reed was just as impressive with his short game to keep his hopes alive in the eighth and perhaps most compelling playoff on the PGA Tour this season. He buried a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a bogey-free 66, pumping his fist as if he were still in Gleneagles at the Ryder Cup.

Reed was the first to finish at 10-under 274.

On the 18th hole in a playoff, he was buried in the lip of a bunker, blasted out to just under 10 feet and made par to stay in the game after Spieth missed from 10 feet. On the next playoff hole, the tough 16th, Reed had no chance well behind the green in grass so deep he could barely see his ball. That came out perfectly for another par.

Reed, who went the final 29 holes without a bogey on the Copperhead course, never had a chance to try for a third par save when Spieth hit the winner.

Not to be overlooked was O’Hair, who has had to earn his full PGA Tour card the last two years in the Web.com Tour Finals. The former RBC Canadian Open champion poured in a pair of big birdies on the back nine, including a 30-footer on the 16th, and made a tough par save on the 18th in regulation.

O’Hair had a 12-foot birdie putt for the win on the second extra hole, and the putt caught the right side of the cup.

Spieth earned a small measure of redemption against Reed, a friend and Ryder Cup partner. Reed beat him in a playoff at the Wyndham Championship in 2013 for the first of Reed’s four PGA Tour wins.

Only two players in 2015 have had at least a share of the 54-hole lead and went on to victory on the PGA Tour. Moore did not become the third. He holed a 7-iron on the sixth hole for an eagle to take a two-shot lead, and back-to-back birdies early on the back nine stretched his lead to three shots with six to play.

Moore went long and into thick rough on the par-3 13th and made bogey, and then dropped another shot on the 16th. He made one more bogey on the 18th when his hopes were gone, closed with a 72 and finished fifth.

That was the wrong direction to go with so many players charging to the finish line.

Reed ran into a pair of 12-foot birdie putts to get within one shot, and then made his big birdie on the 18th. O’Hair ran off four birdies in a six-hole stretch, and finished with a tough par. His drive went into the trees and his approach stopped against the collar of the green some 50 feet away. Using the blade of his wedge, he knocked it up to 5 feet and holed the putt for a 67 to join Reed at 274.

Spieth made a tough par save on the 12th, a 10-foot birdie on the 13th and a 30-foot birdie on the par-5 14th to tie for the lead, and then his short game saved him.

Henrik Stenson, in his Innisbrook debut, ran off three straight birdies and closed with a 67 to fall one shot short of the playoff.

Spieth came full circle at Innisbrook with the victory. Two years ago, his short game led to a birdie-par finish that paved the way for him to get a PGA Tour card after starting the season with no status. He went on to great things that year, including a victory as a 19-year-old and a spot in the Presidents Cup. And he hasn’t really stopped. Spieth went over $10 million for his career.

Nick Taylor carded his only above par round for the championship, a 1-over 72 Sunday, to tie for 24th at 3-under 282.

The other two Canadians in the field were David Hearn of Brantford, B.C. and Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C.

Hearn (70-73-71-73) finished 3-over and tied for 53rd, while Hadwin (68-75-75-76) was 10-over and ended the week 71st.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Ryan Moore had no trouble explaining how, after 12 consecutive pars to start the third-round of the Valspar Championship, he birdied four of the final six holes Saturday.

“I just hit it closer,” he said.

The result was a 4-under 67 that pushed Moore to a 54-hole total of 9-under 204 and a one-shot lead over Jordan Spieth on Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead course.

Spieth shot 68. Derek Ernst was another stroke back after a 69.

The field was like a crowded freeway early before Moore finally opened up some space. When the final pairing of Brendon de Jonge and Spieth reached its fifth hole, they were part of an eight-way tie for the lead at 5 under. Another seven players were a shot back. Twenty-seven were within three.

While de Jonge, who led by one after 36 holes, shot 75 and fell off the pace, Moore, seeking his fifth career win, moved steadily along in the swirling wind until sprinting to the finish.

“Any day around this golf course with no bogies is pretty good especially the spots where I hit it,” Moore said. “I was able to save par really low in the middle of my round, made some good putts but had some good chip shots. Was able to get it rolling there and make some birdies coming in.”

The first birdie, coming on the 200-yard par-13th with a 6-iron to 8 1/2 feet, was the springboard.

“It was not an easy par 3 especially with that wind,” Moore said. “It was hard to figure out whether it was really helping or more across. Obviously, you don’t want to get that wrong with water short and with trouble long, you don’t want to go long of that green.

“Stepped up and hit a great iron shot there, left myself nice 8-, 9-footer right below the hole and knocking that in kind of got me going there on the backside.”

Spieth was tied for the lead until Moore’s birdie at 18. Spieth saved par at that hole with a one-putt from 6 feet.

“I got a lot of confidence at the end right there with my putter,” Spieth said. “I had those 6-, 7- footers that, you know, when I’m close but not quite there those are the ones that slide by the hole because I just kind of baby it a little bit and hit confident putts coming in. Hopefully, that does a lot of good for me tomorrow.”

Nine players are within five shots, all aiming at Moore.

Six shots back of Moore is Canada’s Nick Taylor, who is 3-under and tied for 10th after his third straight 70.

Brantford, Ont.’s David Hearn (+1) is tied for 44th and Abbotsford, B.C. native Adam Hadwin (+5) is tied for 63rd.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Brendon de Jonge rolled in a pair of long putts on his way to a 2-under 69 and the 36-hole lead Friday in the Valspar Championship. Based on the holes remaining, he is halfway home to his first PGA Tour title.

Considering how many players are still in the mix – essentially everyone who made the cut – the weekend might feel even longer.

Only seven shots separated de Jonge from the players who made the cut on the number, the first time the first-to-worst gap has been that small since the 2011 British Open at Royal St. George’s.

“Obviously, gives you a good chance for the weekend,” de Jonge said. He was at 6-under 136, the highest score to lead after 36 holes at Innisbrook in six years.

De Jonge said that after he finished his round in the morning, uncertain how hard the wind would blow and who might get hot with the putter. The wind died, no one could sustain a great round without a few mistakes and he had the 36-hole lead for the fourth time in his career.

But not by much.

Jordan Spieth made a birdie putt from the fringe on the 18th for a 4-under 67 to match the best score of the round. Henrik Stenson, playing the Copperhead course for the first time and apparently enjoying it, made eagle on his first hole and wound up with a 70.

They were one shot behind, along with Ryan Moore (68), Kevin Streelman (69) and Derek Ernst (70).

Ernst, who had only one round in the 60s this year, ran off five straight birdies around the turn to reach 8-under par until he started missing greens, missing putts and making bogeys to fall one shot behind de Jonge.

“Starting the day if you told me I would have shot 1 under I would have been very happy with it,” Ernst said.

Lucas Glover had a 69 and joined Moore and Streelman as the only players to break 70s for both rounds. He was two shots behind, along with Sean O’Hair (72), Ricky Barnes (72) and Ian Poulter (70). Poulter hasn’t been to Innisbrook since 2010, and he was asked what had kept him away.

“Because I’m a buffoon,” Poulter said. “I mean, stupid. This golf course I can compete on because it’s fiddly, it’s position off the tee, small greens, need to chip it well, good pace putting when you’re above the hole. All those things I do well.”

Poulter recalls the greens being sloppy the last time he played, and so he instructed his caddie to never allow him to return. Seven holes into his pro-am round, he said he told his caddie, “What the … was I doing not being here?”

Justin Thomas (72) and Vijay Singh (70) were in the group at 3-under 139, with Luke Donald (68), Matt Kuchar (70) and Patrick Reed (68) among those four behind.

Adam Scott is about the only guy who doesn’t have a chance because he didn’t make the cut. Scott missed four putts from inside 5 feet on his way to a 75 and missed the cut by three shots. It’s the first time he had the weekend off at a golf tournament since the 2012 Byron Nelson Championship.

What makes Innisbrook so mysterious is that players are irritated by the shots they left out on the course, only to realize they’re not in bad shape. Such was the case of Stenson, who made a 25-foot eagle on his opening hole, a 20-foot birdie putt on his final hole and nothing but pars and two bogeys in between.

“I didn’t get it close enough to give myself too many birdies,” Stenson said. “All in all, pretty pleased.”

Spieth rammed in a 20-foot birdie on the third hole that he said left a ball mark on the back of the cup. So that was a good break. He made a 30-foot birdie on No. 6 and rolled it in from 18 feet on the final hole. That was enough to put him in the final group, even if he’s not sure how he got there.

“This is one of those random places where you feel like you should have shot better than you did, but you’re not out of it,” he said. “You can make birdies. The problem is there is trouble around every corner.”

There was even trouble in the fairway. Early in the round, Charley Hoffman stopped when he saw a 10-foot alligator walking across the third fairway.

“We weren’t going anywhere fast,” Hoffman said. “And neither were we.”

Leading the Canadian contingent into the weekend is Nick Taylor, who is sitting at 2-under 140 after matching 70s.

David Hearn (70-73) and Adam Hadwin (68-75) have a share of 57th at 1-over.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Tiger Woods will not be at Bay Hill for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the second tournament he has missed since stating a month ago that he would not return to golf until his game was ready.

Woods still wasn’t ruling out the Masters in a brief statement Friday on his website.

“I’ve put in a lot of time and work on my game and I’m making strides,” Woods said. “But like I’ve said, I won’t return to the PGA Tour until my game is tournament ready and I can compete at the highest level.”

He said he spoke to Palmer on Friday to tell him he would not be at his tournament.

Woods is an eight-time winner at Bay Hill. This will be the second straight time he has missed the Arnold Palmer Invitational. A year ago, he had a back injury that led to surgery a week after the tournament, causing him to miss the Masters for the first time.

“I hope to be ready for the Masters, and I will continue to work hard preparing for Augusta,” Woods said in his statement.

Woods has fallen to No. 79 in the world, his worst ranking since the week before he won his first PGA Tour event as a 20-year-old in 1996. If he does not play leading up to the Masters, he will be out of the top 100 when _ or if _ he gets to Augusta.

Two tournaments remain before the Masters – the Valero Texas Open and the Shell Houston Open. Woods has not played the Texas Open since 1996. He has never played the Houston Open, and he has never played the week before the Masters.

The decision ramps up speculation on the state of Woods – his mind and his game – leading to Augusta.

He has played only 47 holes this year. Woods missed the cut in the Phoenix Open with a career-high 82 in the second round. A week later, he withdrew after 11 holes at Torrey Pines for tightness in his lower back.

He said on Feb. 11 that his scores were not acceptable and that he would not return until his game was up to his standards.

Since back surgery on March 31 of last year, Woods has completed only two 72-hole events. He finished 69th in the British Open, 23 shots behind Rory McIlroy. And he tied for last in an 18-man field at the Hero World Challenge at Isleworth, a course he has played more than any other.

Most shocking about his debut in 2015 was his short game, a collection of bladed shots and chunks that have led to debate over whether he has the yips.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Adam Scott packed up his bags and headed to the next tournament, a common sight except for one tiny detail.

This was only Friday.

Scott missed four putts inside 5 feet in the second round and shot a 4-over 75 to miss the cut at the Valspar Championship, ending the longest active streak on the PGA Tour. Scott had gone 45 straight PGA Tour events – and 57 events worldwide – without missing a cut.

“It had to happen eventually,” he said.

Even so, Scott raised his cap and scratched his head when asked the last time he had a weekend off at a golf tournament. He finally remembered the Byron Nelson Championship in May 2012.

Scott used a conventional putter for the second straight week after having used a long putter anchored to his chest the previous four years, including his Masters victory. He tied for fourth in his 2015 debut – and his debut with a short putter – last week at Doral.

“It was pretty scrappy out there,” Scott said. “Some loose shots, and some loose lag putts and some loose short putts. There’s not many courses we play you can get away with that. I’ve got to tighten it up a little bit. Overall, I feel pretty good. There’s a lot of good stuff in there.”

Scott said no one should be surprised if he used the long putter at Augusta National, adding with a smile that “it’s nice to have options.” But he wasn’t alarmed that he ranked No. 141 out of 144 players at Innisbrook in the key putting statistic.

“I feel fine with it,” he said. “It can happen. You can miss some short ones. Obviously, it’s not what you want and there’s no excuse. But there’s a couple of things I’d like to make an adjustment with on different greens, different green speeds.”

He used the long putter in practice this week, and said it helps as a training aid. “I see myself practicing with it forever,” he said.

Scott couldn’t help but smile when he suggested one problem he faced this week at Innisbrook. He was a little tired, even though he had a three-month break. His wife gave birth to their first child, and he is in the middle of six weeks away from home.

“If you can blame fatigue after a layoff, in fairness, I feel like I’ve crammed more into my last month than I have in a year,” he said. “With the birth, spending nine days at home with a newborn, coming over and practicing and play in an event, all in three weeks … I feel like a lot has happened. I’ve been certainly sleeping soundly this week. I think it’s just getting back adjusted to everything.”

Scott came up just 97 starts short of matching the consecutive cut record held by Tiger Woods from 1998 to 2005.

“Just missed it,” he said with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

He missed the cut, but the Australian didn’t miss a single autograph request for the next 15 minutes as he worked his way along a rail fence, signing Masters flags, golf balls and taking a half-dozen selfies with fans.

The active cut streak on tour now belongs to Steve Stricker at 35. Stricker has not played since the PGA Championship last August.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Brian Davis takes pride in his short game, which saved him from a rough finish Thursday and gave him the lead in the Valspar Championship.

Coming off back-to-back bogeys, Davis chipped in from 25 feet on the ninth green at Innisbrook for a 6-under 65, giving him a one-shot lead over past champion Sean O’Hair and Ricky Barnes after the opening round.

For the 40-year-old Davis, it was the perfect finish to go with what had been an ideal start. Starting on the back nine of the Copperhead course, he missed three birdie chances inside 15 feet and still went out in 30. There wasn’t a hint of trouble until a three-putt from 45 feet on No. 7 and a poor chip at the par-3 eighth that led to bogey.

And right when he thought he had hit a good approach on No. 9, he heard nothing.

“I expected a clap and nobody clapped,” he said.

His chip came out with more over-spin because of the grain in the grass and might have gone about 6 feet by the hole except that it struck the pin.

“Delighted,” the Englishman said.

O’Hair, the 2011 RBC Canadian Open champion, got even more evidence that his game is turning around by making eight birdies in the morning for a 66. Barnes, playing in the afternoon, was tied for the lead until he three-putted the par-3 17th from 35 feet and missed a 12-foot birdie putt on the last hole.

Henrik Stenson, at No. 3 the highest-ranked player in the field, made his debut at Innisbrook by dressing in the same colors as the volunteers, though it wasn’t intentional, and none of the volunteers had matching pants to go with his periwinkle shirt.

He didn’t like the swing he had on the range, though he hit enough good iron shots early on to get by. Stenson hit wedge into the par-4 ninth for a final birdie and a bogey-free 67. He was in a group that included Justin Thomas and Puerto Rico Open winner Alex Cejka.

Thomas opened with nine straight pars, a bogey on the par-5 first hole, and then five birdies.

Stenson played with Adam Scott, who made four straight bogeys on his back nine that ruined a good round. He had a birdie on the final hole for a 71. Also in the group was Jordan Spieth, slowed by a double bogey in his round of 70.

“Fell asleep out there for about 30 minutes,” Scott said.

The Copperhead course didn’t have a lot of bite with its green, soft conditions. Thomas was among those who had mud on the golf ball, which led to his bogey at No. 1. It still was the sturdy test that makes it so popular. Even without much wind and a mostly overcast sky, the course average was about 71.4

“The golf course was there – no wind and fairly soft – so you have to try to make your score today if you could,” Davis said.

It wasn’t there for John Daly. He opened with a double bogey when he three-putted from 5 feet. He later four-putted for triple bogey on the 14th hole. A birdie on the final hole gave him an 81, but there was a sliver of good news at the end of his long day. He wasn’t selected for drug testing.

“No, that’s tomorrow,” said Daly, with a grin.

He said on his SiriusXM radio show Tuesday that night the PGA Tour didn’t have random testing because he has been picked at Innisbrook the last six years.

O’Hair won at Innisbrook in 2008, though he has fallen on lean times. He has had to earn his card at the Web.com Tour Finals each of the last two years.

“The last two years have been disappointing for me,” O’Hair said. “I lost really everything. I lost my ball-striking and kind of lost my mind, lost confidence as far as how I play the game because I like to hit a lot of different shots and I got very swing-oriented.”

Canada’s Adam Hadwin grabbed a share of 10th spot Thursday after an opening-round 68. He wasn’t the only Canadian to start off well.

Nick Taylor and David Hearn both opened with 70s and are tied for 28th.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – John Daly remains angry over what he claims to be an anti-doping policy on the PGA Tour that is not random.

Daly says he’s doesn’t mind getting tested for drugs and says he has never failed a test. But he was irritated because he says he gets tested every year at the Valspar Championship and that he has to keep from using the bathroom on the back nine.

On his SiriusXM radio show Tuesday night, Daly says PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and Andy Pazder – the tour’s chief of operations – need to get off their back sides and fix the problem. He says players know at which tournaments they will be tested.

Daly says other players feel the same way and that he took one for the team.

RANCHO PALOS VERDES, Calif. – The Grand Slam of Golf is moving to Trump National in suburban Los Angeles this fall.

The multi-year agreement between the PGA of America and the Trump Organization was announced Tuesday.

The event will be played Oct. 19-21 in its return to the U.S. mainland for the first time since 1993. It features the winners of golf’s four majors: the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship.

Trump National, whose owner Donald Trump attended the announcement, features a 7,242-yard, par-71 layout with lakes, massive bunkers, waterfalls and scenic views.

Golf Channel will air the event.

The course also will host the PGA Junior League championship on Oct. 17-19.