Jason Day Wins the 2016 Arnold Palmer Invitational

I think we’ve got to start this recap with the return of Jason Day. He hadn’t been at his best in recent weeks and I was a little nervous that he wasn’t going to find his form for a few more events. Day dominated the first two rounds (scores of 66, 65) and then stayed steady the final two rounds (he shot 70 twice). I thought Day looked strong on the final 9 holes and made par on the 18th hole to win. Day was inconsistent on the opening 9 holes and I wasn’t sure he’d be able to steady himself. It was an impressive move by Day.

Levi’s Picks & Totals

Paul Casey  and Justin Rose each finished T-9th and earned $170,100. I have to be happy about two of my picks finishing in the top 10. I thought that Rose was going to have a real chance to win going into Sunday’s round. He shot a 73 and failed to make up ground on Day. He was great early in the tournament. The weather during the 3rd round was tough and I thought Rose faltered in the rain. Casey never really looked like he’d win and I am just happy with a strong finish. Adam Scott didn’t win this week and he’s going to be disappointed because he won his last two events.  Smylie Kaufman joined Adam Scott with a T-12th and a check for a cool $123,480.

Rory McIlroy continues to perplex every single person who watches golf. He shot a 65 on Sunday and a 67 on Friday. Those are elite scores and he made plenty of people curious how he was capable of also shooting two rounds of 75. McIlroy made 6 double-bogeys this week. He made 16 birdies and two eagles. I just can’t figure him out right now. He finished T-27th and made $41,934. Ryan Moore looked like a stud for two rounds. He opened with scores of 71 and 69. He shot an 81 in the third round and I saw his chance to make some solid money this week wash away in the rain. Moore finished T-74th and made $12,285.

The total winnings for the Arnold Palmer Invitational: $641,379

Year to date: (5 tournaments) $4,295,746