Anirban Lahiri lets Rose off the hook to halve the point

March 24, 2016: Anirban Lahiri is facing the heat in Austin in the Dell Match Play event this week. The Indian golfer flew straight back to the USA, after finishing second at the Hero Indian Open on Sunday. Lahiri dropped to 0-1 after suffering a stinging 6&5 defeat to Matt Kuchar, who took the Indian down in the biggest victory of the first day. Needing victory to stay in contention, Lahiri was poised for a comfortable point, leading by two through 16 holes. But Justin Rose showed remarkable resilience to strike back over the last two holes and halve the point.

The result meant that the match between Lahiri and Gomez on Friday is a mere formality while the winner of the tie between Rose and Kuchar will proceed to the round of 16.

Here are the plays for Friday and the scenarios by Mike McAllister on the PGATOUR.COM website.

GROUP 1

1. Jordan Spieth, USA vs. 33. Justin Thomas, USA, 3 p.m.
41. Victor Dubuisson, France vs 53. Jamie Donaldson, Wales, 3:10 p.m.

Standings
Spieth 2-0
Dubuisson 1-1
Donaldson 1-1
Thomas 0-2

Scenarios: Spieth controls his destiny — he’ll advance with a win or tie. If he loses, then Dubuisson or Donaldson can force a playoff with a win. A tie eliminates both players. Thomas has been eliminated.

GROUP 2

2. Jason Day, Australia vs. 25. Paul Casey, England, 12:20 p.m.
38. Thongchai Jaidee, Thailand vs. 64. Graeme McDowell, N. Ireland, 12:30 p.m.

Standings
Day 2-0-0
Jaidee 1-1-0
Casey 0-1-1
McDowell 0-1-1

Scenarios: Day controls his destiny — he’ll advance with a win or tie. If he loses, Jaidee can force a playoff with a win. Casey and McDowell have been eliminated.

GROUP 3

3. Rory McIlroy, N. Ireland vs. 28. Kevin Na, USA, 11 a.m.
48. Smylie Kaufman, USA vs. Thorbjorn Olesen, Denmark, 11:10 a.m.

Standings
McIlroy 2-0
Na 2-0
Kaufman 0-2
Olesen 0-2

Scenarios: This group comes down to the McIlroy vs. Na match. Winner advances. If the match is halved, then it goes to a playoff. Kaufman and Olesen have been eliminated with two losses.

GROUP 4

4. Bubba Watson, USA vs. 23. J.B. Holmes, USA, 1:40 p.m.
35. Emiliano Grillo, Argentina vs. 65. Patton Kizzire, USA, 1:50 p.m.

Standings
Watson 1-0-1
Grillo 1-1-0
Kizzire 0-0-2
Holmes 0-1-1

Scenarios: Watson controls his own destiny — a win over Holmes and he advances. If Watson loses, then Grillo or Kizzire can advance with a win. If Watson ties, then Grillo or Kizzire can force a playoff with a win. The possibility of a four-man playoff exists if Holmes beats Watson, and Grillo and Kizzire halve their match. Each would then have 1.5 points.

GROUP 5

5. Rickie Fowler, USA vs. 29. Byeong-Hun An, Korea, 1 p.m.
49. Scott Piercy, USA vs. 60. Jason Dufner, USA, 1:10 p.m.

Standings
An 1-0-1
Dufner 1-1-0
Piercy 0-0-2
Fowler 0-1-1

Scenarios: An can advance with a win. If he ties, then Dufner or Piercy must win to force a playoff. If Fowler wins, then Dufner or Piercy can advance with a win. If Fowler wins and Dufner-Piercy tie, that will create a four-man playoff.

GROUP 6

6. Adam Scott, Australia vs. 32. Bill Haas, USA, 10:20 a.m.
43. Chris Wood, England vs. 57. Thomas Pieters, Belgium, 10:30 a.m.

Standings
Haas 2-0-0
Scott 1-0-1
Pieters 0-1-1
Wood 0-0-2

Scenarios: Haas can advance with a win or a tie. Scott must defeat Haas to advance. Pieters and Wood have been eliminated.

GROUP 7

8. Justin Rose, England vs. 30. Matt Kuchar, USA, 11:40 a.m.
50. Anirban Lahiri, India vs. 59. Fabian Gomez, Argentina, 11:50 a.m.

Standings
Rose 1-0-1
Kuchar 1-0-1
Lahiri 0-1-1
Gomez 0-1-1

Scenarios: The Rose-Kuchar winner will advance. A tie will force a playoff. Lahiri and Gomez have been eliminated.

GROUP 8

9. Dustin Johnson, USA vs. 24. Jimmy Walker, USA, 2:20 p.m.
39. Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Thailand vs. 51. Robert Streb, USA, 2:30 p.m.

Standings
Johnson 1-1-0
Walker 1-1-0
Aphibarnrat 1-1-0
Streb 1-1-0

Scenarios: All four players have the same record, so it’s wide-open. If there are two winners on Friday, they would reach a playoff. If there are two ties, then all four players would reach a playoff. The only non-playoff scenario is to have one match winner and the other match end in a tie.

GROUP 9

10. Patrick Reed, USA vs. 19. Phil Mickelson, USA, 2 p.m.
44. Matthew Fitzpatrick, England vs. 55. Daniel Berger, USA, 2:10 p.m.

Standings
Reed 2-0
Mickelson 2-0
Fitzpatrick 0-2
Berger 0-2

Scenarios: Pretty simple — this group comes down to the Reed vs. Mickelson match. Winner advances. If the match is halved, then it goes to a playoff. Fitzpatrick and Berger have been eliminated with two losses.

GROUP 10

11. Danny Willett, England vs. 20. Brooks Koepka, USA, 11:20 a.m.
42. Billy Horschel, USA vs. 52. Jaco Van Zyl, S. Africa, 11:30 a.m.

Standings
Koepka 2-0-0
Horschel 1-1-0
Willett 0-1-1
Van Zyl 0-1-1

Scenarios: Koepka controls his own destiny and is guaranteed at least a spot in a playoff. If Koepka wins his match, then he advances. Koepka can also advance with a tie if Horschel ties or loses. If Horschel wins and Koepka loses, then they will meet in a playoff. Willett and Van Zyl have been eliminated.

GROUP 11

12. Brandon Grace, S. Africa vs. 34. Russell Knox, Scotland, 10 a.m.
40. David Lingmerth, Sweden vs. 56. Chris Kirk, USA, 10:10 a.m.

Standings
Knox 1-0-1
Grace 1-1-0
Kirk 1-1-0
Lingmerth 0-1-1

Scenarios: Knox controls his destiny — a win and he advances. He can eliminate Grace with a tie. If Grace and Kirk win, they will meet in a playoff. If Kirk wins and Knox ties, they will meet in a playoff. Kirk cannot advance with a tie. Lingmerth has been eliminated.

GROUP 12

13. Hideki Matsuyama, Japan vs. 22. Kevin Kisner, USA, 12:40 p.m.
45. Soren Kjeldsen, Denmark vs. 54. Rafa Cabera Bello, Spain, 12:50 p.m.

Standings
Cabrera Bello 2-0-0
Matsuyama 1-1-0
Kisner 1-1-0
Kjeldsen 0-2-0

Scenarios: Cabrera Bello will advance with a win or tie, and is guaranteed at least a playoff spot. The Matsuyama-Kisner winner can force a playoff if Cabrera Bello loses. If Matsuyama-Kisner tie, both players will be eliminated. Kjeldsen has been eliminated with two losses.

GROUP 13

14. Sergio Garcia, Spain vs. 27. Marc Leishman, Australia, 1:20 p.m.
47. Ryan Moore, USA vs. 51. Lee Westwood, England, 1:30 p.m.

Standings
Moore 1-0-1
Garcia 1-1-0
Westwood 1-1-0
Leishman 0-1-1

Scenarios: Moore is guaranteed to win the group by beating Westwood; he could also win the group with a tie and a Garcia loss. Westwood is eliminated with a loss or tie. Garcia is eliminated with a loss or tie. If Westwood and Garcia both win, they will force a playoff. Leishman has been eliminated.

GROUP 14

15. Zach Johnson, USA vs. 26. Shane Lowry, Ireland, 10:40 a.m.
46. Martin Kaymer, Germany vs. 62. Marcus Fraser, Australia, 10:50 a.m.

Standings
Johnson 2-0-0
Kaymer 1-1-0
Lowry 0-1-1
Fraser 0-1-1

Scenarios: Johnson controls his own destiny and is guaranteed at least a spot in a playoff. If Johnson wins his match, then he advances. Johnson can also advance with a tie if Kaymer ties or loses. If Kaymer wins and Johnson loses, then they will meet in a playoff. Lowry and Fraser have been eliminated.

GROUP 15

17. Brandt Snedeker, USA vs. 21. Charl Schwartzel, S. Africa, Noon
36. Danny Lee, New Zealand vs. 58. Charley Hoffman, USA, 12:10 p.m.

Standings
Schwartzel 2-0-0
Snedeker 1-0-1
Lee 0-1-1
Hoffman 0-2-0

Scenarios: It comes down to the Schwartzel-Snedeker match. Schwartzel can advance with a win or a tie. Snedeker must win to advance. Lee and Hoffman have been eliminated.

GROUP 16

18. Louis Oosthuizen, S. Africa vs. 31. Andy Sullivan, England, 2:40 p.m.
37. Bernd Wiesberger, Austria vs. 63. Matt Jones, Australia, 2:50 p.m.

Standings
Oosthuizen 2-0
Sullivan 2-0
Wiesberger 0-2
Jones 0-2

Scenarios: This group comes down to the Oosthuizen vs. Sullivan match. Winner advances. If the match is halved, then it goes to a playoff. Wiesberger and Jones have been eliminated with two losses.