The Arnold Palmer Invitational was in full swing on Friday at Bay Hill, and Kurt Kitayama was the star of the show. The Californian climbed to the top of the leaderboard after firing a four-under-par 68 despite blustery conditions.
Kitayama carded five birdies on his way to a two-shot lead, one ahead of former world number one Jordan Spieth who fired a three-under-par 69 to move to seven-under.
Corey Conners of Canada had the low round of the day, a six-under-par 66, to move into a tie for third on six-under. Justin Thomas, Matt Fitzpatrick, Patrick Cantlay and Davis Riley are all a further shot back on five-under.
Kitayama admitted that he found the conditions difficult, and that he had to focus on staying in the moment. On his circuitous route to the PGA Tour, he said that he had been forced to learn to cope with adversity.
“Not finding success early (in US) was disappointing, but it took me somewhere else to grow,” Kitayama said. “Just dealing with adversity, really. When you’re in a random country in Asia and you don’t know what you’re doing or where you’re going, it’s pretty frustrating and honestly kind of scary a little bit.
So I think that helps you just grow, just kind of learn from that experience of being in an uncomfortable situation.”
Spieth is lurking menacingly in second place, and admitted that putting would be key in his bid to catch Kitayama this weekend.
“Tee to green I’m doing what I need to do to be able to win the golf tournament,” Spieth said. “Just try to hole some more putts.”
World number one Jon Rahm led the field after the opening round, but his hopes of victory faded after a four-over-par 76 on Friday. The Spaniard finished the day six shots off the lead on three-under.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational will be an intriguing battle over the weekend, with the weather likely to play a major part. Kitayama has the lead, but with Spieth, Rahm and a host of others just a couple of shots behind, the tournament is still wide open.
