You never know when a good round is going to kick in. Rocco Mediate was muddling along on Friday morning at the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club, completing the second nine of his weather-delayed opening round. He was 2 over through 13 holes and had yet to even make a birdie. At the 600-yard fifth, he faced 138 yards for his third shot, chose 9-iron … and holed it. Eagle. Two more birdies followed on the way in, and suddenly Mediate was signing for 2-under 68, only one shot off the first-round pace.
“I was okay, I was playing okay,” Mediate said. “It was hard, the wind turned. Yeah, just came off nice, hit, just went right in, the first bounce. It was a nice looking shot, but it was a total bonus. Then I hit a good shot on the next four holes, almost birdied all, I just missed on 6.”
An added bonus was making a rare birdie-2 at the 220-yard eighth hole, where he hit 5-iron to about 8 feet.
Mediate, 58, captured the 2016 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Harbor Shores in Michigan, where he opened the tournament by shooting 62, and he tied for 12th two years ago at Oak Hill. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Mediate’s first PGA Tour victory at the Ford Championship at Doral.
