PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Ryan Palmer is well aware of his personal streak of futility on PGA National’s most famous stretch.
The Bear Trap hasn’t been kind to Palmer in recent years. He has played Nos. 15-17 a combined 38 over par since 2007 at the Honda Classic, the highest score of any active player. But he has not been bitten through the first two rounds this week, a large reason why Palmer holds a one-shot lead at 9 under.
“Two days in a row, I’m even par on the trap. Keep saying how I’m 38 over par,” Palmer said after a second-round 65. “It’s a daunting task, those three holes. You never know what the winds are doing. … You get out of there in even par, you’ve made ground on the field.”
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This is not the first time that Palmer has contended at this event despite his Bear Trap record; in 2014, he was a part of a four-man playoff eventually won by Russell Henley. Palmer said that come tournament week he’ll hear about his ursine nemesis from a handful of his Twitter followers, but he looks to focus elsewhere once he gets to the course.
It’s a plan that has paid off through two rounds at PGA National, where Palmer is now in position for his first win since 2010.
“You see it once in a while,” he said. “That’s the way it goes. Those holes, they have gotten me, and you don’t think about that. You’re just trying to hit some quality shots and make pars.”