Schauffele in lead, but there’s a logjam one back
Front-runner has 6 birdies in round of 4-under 66
FORT WORTH — The PGA Tour went three months without playing. It took three days to show fans what they were missing, even if all they could do was watch on TV.
Eight players had at least a share of the lead at some point Saturday in the Charles Schwab Challenge. When the third round at Colonial ended, 14 players were separated by three shots.
And not just anybody.
Xander Schauffele, among the growing roster of young stars in golf, finished off his six-birdie round with a 12-footer on the last hole for a 4-under 66.
The six players one shot behind included Jordan Spieth, whose short game helped him navigate some early trouble and nerves. He had the lead until not making a birdie on the back nine. Still, his 68 gave him his best 54-hole position since Colonial a year ago as he tries to end three years without winning.
Also one shot behind was Justin Thomas (66) and U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland, who quickly got into the mix with birdies on his last two holes for a 66.
Rory McIlroy (69) and Justin Rose (68) were among those three shots behind. Patrick Reed, who had to birdie three of his last six holes Friday to make the cut with one shot to spare, shot 63 and was three back. All this with hardly any noise.
“I don’t have like a huge effect on the crowd I’d say, so not having fans isn’t the craziest thing to me,” Schauffele said. “It just does feel like I’m playing at home with some of my buddies. It’s quiet. You make three birdies in a row, you can kind of give yourself a pat on the back.”
This wasn’t entirely a TV show. A few houses in the Colonial neighborhood put up their own hospitality tents to see limited golf, the rowdiest behind the 16th tee and another down the 15th fairway. Fans gathered on the balcony of an apartment complex along the 14th, which also brought out the first, “Get in the hole!” since March 12, the day before the PGA Tour was shut down because of the pandemic.
On the course, there were no bursts of cheers as Spieth rammed in a 40-foot putt on the eighth hole or stuffed his approach to 3 feet on No. 9 to take the lead. A few dozen of the essential personnel — broadcast crews, volunteers for scoring — were around when Schauffele made his birdie for the lead at 13-under 197.
But there are leader boards that show only the score — no need for updates on FedEx Cup leaders or statistical data for each player as he prepares a shot because that’s for the fans, and there are none.
That will be the only way anyone knows where they stand in what figures to be a wild chase to the finish.
“When you have spectators and things, you get on a roll, and most of the time you feed off of that,” said Branden Grace, whose third straight 66 left him one shot behind. “I remember when I won Hilton Head and played well in the majors, the crowd started getting behind you and you start feeling like you can’t do anything wrong. At the moment, it’s just you and your caddie out there.”
Colonial is the first of five tournaments in the return to golf that doesn’t allow spectators. Players have had three days to adjust. Sunday is different, everyone trying to generate their own momentum without the energy delivered from the fans.