Cameron Davis to miss Open Championship opportunity
Cameron Davis – file photo – Bruce Young
The PGA Tour’s latest winner, Cameron Davis, had a day of mixed fortunes on day one of this week’s John Deere Classic in Illinois.
His opening round of 67 at this week’s event has him in a share of 12th place and just four from the lead held by Chesson Hadley and Sebastian Munoz.
Davis actually reached 6 under par on the par through 12 holes on the par 71 layout before two dropped shots late in his round cost him an even better start.
Following his success last week and sharp jump in his world ranking as a result, Davis actually earned a spot at the Open Championship when Kevin Na withdrew but because of his quest for a green card to attain permanent residency in the US he has chosen not to head to Royal St Georges.
“I got married last year in September and decided to start the green card process to make traveling in and out of the country so much easier, but unfortunately for six months I’m not going to be able to leave the States while that’s getting processed,” said Davis after his round today.
While disappointed to not be able to make it to his second Open Championship, Davis is philosophical about the hiccup.
“That means I’m not able to go next week, but yeah, I’m looking forward to seeing my family and celebrating back in Seattle next week and recharging a little bit because this week is already a bit of a grind to get through. I’m pretty tired. It’ll be nice to relax.”
But Davis picked up where he left off last Sunday in Detroit and although unsure just how his game would react to the win, he was delighted with just how he played.
“I had no expectations for today really. I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep playing well or if there was going to be a bit of a lull after all that, but I’m very happy to keep it going.
“Pleased with a good solid first round, and yeah, I’m definitely a little more fatigued than I was after the first-round last week, so I’m just going to take it easy this afternoon.”
The highlight of his round today came at the par 5 2nd hole (his 11th of the round) where his 7-iron approach from 195 yards finished 7 feet from the hole from where he converted for eagle to move to 6 under.
Then came the bogeys at his 16th and 17th holes but he is still well-placed heading into day two.
