ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Webb Simpson isn’t embarrassed that he carries hybrids in his bag.
“I do love my hybrids,” he said. “My 3-iron hybrid’s been with me since 2013 and this 4-hybrid’s been with me now since 2016.”
The latter was the pick from 219 yards at the par-3 third hole at the Plantation Course at Sea Island Resort on Thursday.
“I don’t like left-to-right winds with my hybrids or woods, but it was a left-to-right wind and the 4-hybrid was only enough club if I hit it really low,” Simpson explained. “It was one of those where I had a little too much face rotation in a good way and it overdrew, so yeah, perfect club.”
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Perfect, indeed. Simpson’s ball bounced once and circled the cup for a hole-in-one, his fourth career ace on the PGA Tour.
“My target was about 15 feet right of the hole there, so I did pull it, but I did hit it good enough to where I knew it would cover on that line,” he said. “Yeah, it was a great moment, great memory.”
The one on the card propelled him to a 5-under 67 in the opening round of the RSM Classic, his 34th round in the 60s in 39 career rounds in the event. Simpson has feasted at the RSM, recording five top-10 finishes in 10 previous starts, including a pair of seconds and a third.
What a shot. What a call
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Simpson, who has plummeted to No. 111 in the world and hasn’t recorded a top-10 finish since last year’s RSM Classic, recently parted ways with instructor Butch Harmon and started working with Cameron McCormick, who is best known for his work with Jordan Spieth. Of moving on from Harmon, who helped Simpson reach new heights in 2020, Simpson said, “It was so hard to get to him, you know, for just one lesson and make it back to Charlotte.”
Simpson has had three lessons from McCormick, including a day shortly before the CJ Cup last month.
When asked to explain what has held him back, he said, “I think I’m going to blame myself for a couple years there I tried to hit the ball so much further that I got into a number of bad habits that it was hard to see because it happens incrementally over time. But Cameron, he pulled out a bunch of swings from 2011 and 2020 and showed those similarities, so we’re just trying to get it back to where that was.”
Simpson added: “I’m finally on the right track. I’m healthy, I feel like what I’m working on is simple for me and I’m starting to have confidence again. You know, I didn’t have that much confidence last year. It’s hard to create confidence out of nothing. I’d work on my game and I just wasn’t quite getting over the hump, but I feel like the last five, six weeks since I’ve been home, my practice sessions are different and they’re reminding me of what it used to feel like and the shots I’m hitting, the way I’m striking the golf ball. So I’m optimistic. I feel like, I’m 37, I still have a number of years of good golf in me.”