Back to reality! PGA Championship hero Michael Block suffers a nightmare start to his first tournament after winning $288k at Oak Hill… as he sits at the bottom of the Charles Schwab Challenge leaderboard after 11 over 81 in the first round.
Michael Block endured a day to forget in his first tournament since the PGA Championship, as he finished in last place after posting 81-for-11 at the Charles Schwab Challenge.
The 46-year-old American club pro returned to the course after earning a sponsor’s waiver for the PGA Tour event at Colonial after a dream week.
But he finished last Thursday out of 120 golfers after hitting seven bogeys before hitting double bogeys at numbers 15, 16 and 18.
On the first tee of his first round, Block stepped up, waved to the crowd, made his way to the ball, and quickly nailed his shot through the trees.
The clubhouse pro who finished tied for 15th in last week’s PGA Championship entered the grounds of the Colonial Country Club in Ft. Worth, Texas with wind in his sails and good energy behind him.
Michael Block’s first round at Colonial didn’t go as planned, starting with three straight bogeys
The 46-year-old American club pro received a reality check after his dream week at the major
It came a day after Block claimed he could be ‘one of the best in the world’ with Rory driving.
That wind may have brought him back to reality as Block charged three bogeys in a row to start his round.
Block had some magic left in his bag from last week’s tournament, pulling out a hybrid for a par-3 tee shot that raced down the front of the green and looked like it might drop into the hole, a repeat of the magical ace from the Last week on the 15th hole at Oak Hill.
He landed just four feet from the cup, with Block hitting him into the hole for birdie.
But all that good luck was immediately undone on the next hole when he chipped across the green, forcing him back and committing another bogey.
His game had been poor from the start, the best example being his second shot on the second hole.
With 100 yards to go, Block pulled out his wedge and drove it over the green and about 42 yards deep into the trees.
It could spell the start of a heartbreaking end to a good story, but that may have started before Block even started.
Appearing on a podcast with Bob Menery, Block made the bold statement that he would be one of the best players in the world if he could handle the ball like Rory McIlroy.
‘Oh my gosh, what he would shoot from where Rory hits him would be stupid. I think he would be one of the best players in the world. Hands down,” Block said.
‘YOf I had that stupid length, all day. My iron game, wedge game, around the greens and putting is world class.’
If Block could find a way to come back and earn his way to play Saturday, it would be the fifth cut he’s made in his career.
If Block finds a way to return, he could be set for the fifth cut he’s made on tour.
Block won the Low Professional title at Oak Hill, earning $288,000 in the process.
Prior to the PGA Championship, the last cut he made was at the Sanderson Farms Championship in Mississippi in the 2014-15 PGA Tour season.
Block’s finish in Oak Hill was the stuff of legends as he became a national hero over the weekend.
He shot 70-70-70-71 over the four rounds to finish the tournament one over par, winning the Low Professional title.
That earned him a staggering $288k, vastly surpassing all of his previous tour’s combined earnings.
