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In some respects the final round of the Sony Open will begin similarly to the second round. One thing that has been consistent this week is the fact that PGA Tour rookies Scott Langley and Russell Henley have been hovering around the top of the leaderboard. To begin the second day of play Langley held a one shot lead over Wilson. When the final day of play gets underway, the two will be tied at 17 under par and will be playing in the final group together, just as they have for the entirety of the tournament. I guess there is something to be said for being comfortable with your playing partner.
Not that their respective golf games need any help this week, but being in contention on the final day of a tournament has to wreak havoc on the nerves. The strong relationship these two have should help to quell a good deal of those nerves and make it more like a Sunday afternoon at the local muni (except for the crowds, cameras and huge prize potential). These two are certainly saying all the right things, as well. In a post-round interview, Henley said “Obviously, I’ve played great golf, and I feel like I can compete out here. And I think when I get confidence like that, I can compete. It lets me get out of my way a little bit. It’s a long year. Whatever happens tomorrow, I’m going to learn from it.” To me, that sounds like just the outlook you have to take when you’re a tour rookie being thrust into the spotlight.
Henley and Langley currently share a three shot lead over their closest competitor, Tim Clark, who doesn’t think that the stage is going to be too much for these rookies. “I’m sure they won’t be too intimidated,” Clark said. “That’s going to be fun to see them play. There’s all these young guys coming out these days, and they’re ready to go right from the start. So it’s going to be a fun battle.”
Whether or not one of these two rookies wins this tournament, I just hope they play a solid final round of golf to keep their momentum going. This just goes to show that you never know what’s going to happen in any given week on the PGA Tour.
You can view all of Carl’s RantSports articles here and follow him on Twitter @CarlConradRS.
