Another major run for Koepka
Tiger is in the hunt at PGA; he lurks 4 shots off lead
ST. LOUIS — Two-time U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka took a step toward adding a third major to his short list of victories.
Koepka bullied rain-softened Bellerive on Saturday on the front nine and built a four-shot lead, only to run into bad patch that brought a strong list of contenders into the mix — including Tiger Woods — going into the final round of the PGA Championship.
Even with back-to-back bogeys on the back nine, Koepka had a 4-under 66 for a two-shot lead over Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters champion who has been struggling through his worst season in nearly two decades. Scott had a 65 to get into the final group.
Gary Woodland lost his way in his footprints in a bunker and made triple bogey on No. 10, falling six shots behind, and still managed a 71 to stay within three shots of the lead, along with Jon Rahm (66) and Rickie Fowler (69).
The biggest buzz, as always, belonged to Woods.
Coming off a three-putt bogey on the fifth hole, Woods ran off three straight birdies to get in range, only to stall on the back nine as he has done so often this year. He hit a 4-iron so pure on the par-5 17th hole that he immedi-
ately began walking off to it, and thousands of fans roared when it settled 20 feet from the hole for a possible eagle that could have brought him within one of the lead.
He missed. And then he missed the next from 4 feet for birdie and ended his day with 10 straight pars. Woods had to settle for a 66, and by the time everyone else came through the 17th hole, he slipped back to a tie for sixth, four shots out of the lead.
“Not just myself, but everyone’s going to have to shoot low rounds,” Woods said. “It’s soft, it’s gettable, and you can’t just go out there and make a bunch of pars.”
Koepka was at 12-under 198 and will play in the final group of a major for the first time. He won in the penultimate group at the U.S. Open each of the last two years.
He already burnished his reputation two months ago by winning a U.S. Open on two entirely different courses — one at Erin Hills with a record-tying score of 16-under par, the other at Shinnecock Hills where he survived to win at 1-over par.
He has only one other PGA Tour victory, one in Europe and two in Japan. But put him against the strongest fields and the biggest events, and he’s a world-beater. This test figures to be different. Bellerive is so soft that a charge can come from anywhere.
“I’ve watched Tiger win 14 of these things hanging around a lot of the time,” Scott said. “He ran away with a few, for sure, but he hung around for a lot. And I would love to hang around tomorrow.”
Ten players were within four shots of the lead, including defending champion Justin Thomas (68), Jason Day (67) and Stewart Cink, the 2009 British Open champion who played with Woods and matched his 66.
“It’s a pretty intense environment out there. It’s fun,” Cink said. “Hearing the crowd, and Tiger’s performing great, it was like turning back the hands of the clock.”
As easy as it looks at times, Bellerive can still bite at any moment.
Jordan Spieth found that out on a hole that effectively ended his second bid for the career Grand Slam. From well right of the 12th fairway, he tried to hit through a gap and instead caromed off a tree and out-of-bounds, leading to triple bogey and falling back to 4 under for the tournament. He had to settle for a 69 and was eight shots behind, with 27 players in front of him.
■ Los Altos Golf Course teaching pro David Muttitt shot a 1-under 69 to finish his rain-suspended second round Saturday. But he was nowhere near the cut line of even-par after his field-worst 81 in Thursday’s first round.