Late eagle from the fairway stakes Spieth to lead at Pebble
He shot 1-under 71 as he goes for a second victory at Pebble Beach in the last five years. A pedestrian round that included bogeys on two of the par 5s left Spieth two shots out of the lead with three holes to play. Spieth didn’t have to contend with what he predicted to be a “mean” day at Pebble Beach. The raging wind was more of a stiff breeze along the ocean holes that Pebble gets all the time. He made bogey on the easiest hole at Pebble Beach from the middle of the fairway on the par-5 second hole, coming up well short of the green, pitching short of the putting surface and missing a par putt from 5 feet.
Homa, Finau, Kim share 3rd-round lead at American Express
Homa made nine birdies and shrugged off a double bogey on the way to a 7-under 65 in the third round Saturday, joining Tony Finau and Si Woo Kim atop the leaderboard at 15-under 201. Richy Werenski also shot a 65 and moved within a shot of the lead on the Stadium Course at PGA West near Palm Springs. Finau and Kim both shot 67. Kim was bogey-free, while the streakier Finau bounced back from a double bogey on the 13th with three consecutive birdies. Precipitation finally fell in earnest when the final group reached the 18th hole, with Finau and Kim forced to pull out their umbrellas.
Hoge in four-way tie for Wyndham lead after two rounds
Hoge, tied for the first-round lead with Harold Varner III and Roger Sloan, kept in front with a steady 2-under 68 to get to 10-under par. Hoge, whose best-ever tour finish was a second at The Greenbrier this season, was asked what it would take for his first PGA Tour win. Like Kim, Gooch shot 65 to get into the foursome on top. He had six birdies, including two of his final three holes, to move up. Kokrak was in a group of seven one shot further back along with past Wyndham champ Webb Simpson, who shot his second straight 66.
Thomas assured $2 million bonus as tour heads to postseason
He has not made it to the Tour Championship since 2017, the year of his last victory. CLUTCH PARFormer Masters champion Charl Schwartzel had reason to celebrate on Friday without ever being in the hunt at the PGA Championship. That got the attention of the PGA of America, which gave him an exemption into the PGA Championship. The LOCALiQ Series for players on the Canadian, China and Latin America circuits for the PGA Tour now has a conclusion. STAT OF THE WEEKIn the last five years of the PGA Championship, players have posted all four rounds in the 60s without winning 16 times.
With a swing and silence, PGA Tour gets back to business
(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)FORT WORTH, Texas With one swing met with silence, the PGA Tour got back to business Thursday at Colonial. Ryan Palmer was selected to hit the opening tee shot at the Charles Schwab Challenge as a Colonial member who raised money for COVID-19 pandemic relief through his Pros For A Purpose campaign. The last PGA Tour event was March 12 at The Players Championship for the opening round. The tour first announced there'd be no fans the rest of the week, and by the end of the day canceled the tournament and eventually 10 more. Players also were told they should handle their own clubs, and caddies should wipe down flagsticks after handling them.
TV production does its part in conservative return to golf
It was vastly different from any PGA Tour broadcast on network TV, said Greg Hopfe, executive producer of PGA Tour Entertainment. With so few cameras a typical PGA Tour event on network TV has about 20 cameras players at times were held in place to allow the cameras to get in position. It all was done with a conservative return to golf, following CDC guidelines and keeping contact minimal. Everyone who worked the event 28 people at Seminole, 23 people at PGA Tour Entertainment offices in St. Augustine were tested for the new coronavirus. It's roughly 1,000 miles from Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, to Fort Worth, and then 1,000 to Hilton Head for the RBC Heritage, and just under 1,000 miles to Cromwell, Connecticut, for the Travelers Championship.