Zurich Classic – Rounds 1 & 2 Recap: Moving Day Awaits!

The Zurich Classic always brings chaos, birdies, and heartbreak — and after two rounds at TPC Louisiana, we've got plenty of all three. With the unique team format (Fourball Thursday, Foursomes Friday), pressure mounted quickly, and the cut line spared no favorites. Let's dive into the action:

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🔥 Teams Staying Alive:

• Andrew Novak / Ben Griffin – 62-66
  Solid, steady golf. Sitting comfortably heading into the weekend.

• JT Poston / Keith Mitchell – 64-70
  A strong Fourball start helped them absorb a tougher Foursomes round.

• Justin Lower / Chad Ramey – 67-67
  Quiet but effective. Two rounds under par has them right in the hunt.

• Michael Thorbjornsen / Karl Vilips – 64-70
  An impressive showing from the young guns. Alternate shot didn't faze them.

• Nick Taylor / Adam Hadwin – 66-66
  The Canadian combo looks strong and is well-positioned to contend.

• Nico Echavarria / Max Greyserman – 66-68
  Staying aggressive — solid teamwork in both formats.

• Nicolai Hojgaard / Rasmus Hojgaard – 59-70
  Absolutely scorching opening round. They cooled off on Friday but still easily through.

• Rory McIlroy / Shane Lowry – 64-69
  Two stars playing well together. Expect them to climb over the weekend.

• Sahith Theegala / Aaron Rai – 63-69
  Dangerous pairing still lurking near the top.

• Thomas Detry / Robert MacIntyre – 64-69
  Flying under the radar but definitely in the mix.

• Tom Hoge / Kevin Chappell – 63-71
  New pairing after Billy Horschel’s WD, but Hoge and Chappell made it work.

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❌ Teams That Missed the Cut:

• Carson Young / Akshay Bhatia – 64-73
  A great Fourball start wasted by a messy alternate shot round.

• Collin Morikawa / Kurt Kitayama – 61-75
  After a sizzling Thursday, they completely collapsed Friday. Major disappointment for one of the favorites.

• Joel Dahmen / Harry Higgs – 65-71
  Crowd favorites couldn't find enough birdies when it counted.

• Matthew Fitzpatrick / Alex Fitzpatrick – 66-69
  The brotherly duo gave it a good run but came up just short.

• Peter Malnati / Russell Knox – 65-74
  Couldn't hold it together when the format flipped.

• Rico Hoey / Sam Ryder – 64-71
  Missed opportunities in Foursomes cost them dearly.

• Charley Hoffman / Nick Watney – 67-73
  Experience wasn't enough to save them this week.

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🏌️‍♂️ Early Takeaways:

• Foursomes (alternate shot) destroyed a lot of teams. The Friday format shift exposed weak links and chemistry issues.

• The Hojgaard twins set the tone early — shooting a ridiculous 59 in Round 1.

• Big names like Morikawa and Fitzpatrick crashing out shows how brutal team golf can be.