Story By: Sol Tucker and Edward Kerns II
Photos By: Sol Tucker and Edward Kerns II
Ponte Vedra, FL–
It wasn’t the day that either Tommy Fleetwood or Rory McIlroy wanted to start, but after a brutal first hold for both players, they were able to recover and stay in contention for the trophy tomorrow with John Rahm at the top at -15.
With Five shots behind going into the third round, Rahm shot 30 on the back nine at TPC Sawgrass and surged into the lead when McIlroy and Fleetwood couldn’t keep pace.
McIlroy duffed a chip shot and had to scramble for bogey on the opening hole, hit a chip over the green on the par-5 second hole and turned potential birdie into bogey, and that was as bad as it got. He still was under par at the turn by running off three birdies, including a 4-iron to a foot on the hardest par 3 on the course at No. 8.
But after a two-putt birdie on the par-5 11th, McIlroy’s chances dried up. Even on the par-5 16th, he tried a low runner out of the pine trees and it came out so hot that it ran through the green and into the water.
Jason Day had a 68 and was three shots behind.Editor’s Picks
Tiger Woods was five shots better on the par-3 17th — a quadruple bogey on Friday, a 2-foot birdie putt on Saturday — but still started so slowly that even a late run of birdies was only good for a 72. He was 12 shots behind in his last stroke-play event before the Masters.
The biggest challenge for all players tomorrow will be the rain. A good bit of rain is on the radar beginning as early as 6am in the morning, which could effect the chances for all players finishing tomorrow. Stay tuned, its going to be a roller coaster ride to the top.
