Green grabs lead Na shoots 61 for two-stroke edge
LAS VEGAS — Kevin Na made 10 birdies on Saturday, but the one putt that came to his mind after matching his best score was a par.
Na was in a bunker right of the green on the par-3 fifth hole at TPC Summerlin, and he blasted out some 20 feet by the hole, leaving a par putt with about six feet of break. He made it and was on his way.
“I thought that was the biggest putt today,” Na said.
He finished with three birdies on the last four holes for a 10-under-par 61, tying his personal best on the PGA Tour. It gave him the 54-hole record in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and a two-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay.
“Somebody asked me that yesterday. They said, ‘Do you feel like over the ball you’re just going to make everything?’ No, it’s not that,” Na said. “I feel comfortable and I feel confident. And all I’m trying to do is hit good putts.”
They’re ending up in the right spots. Na, who had a 62 on Friday, has gained about 5.5 strokes to the field in putting in his past two rounds to move to 22-under 191 going into the final round.
Na, who was born in South Korea, lives in Las Vegas and captured his first PGA Tour title at this tournament in 2011. He was pumping his fist after every putt down the stretch in Saturday’s third round, which yielded six scores of 63 or better and produced an average score of 67.75.
Cantlay — who won the tournament two years ago and was runner-up last year — stayed with Na until failing to get up and down from a bunker on the reachable par-4 15th and making a bogey from the bunker on the par-3 17th. He closed with a 15-foot birdie putt for a 63.
Pat Perez (62) was third, four shots out of the lead, with Lucas Glover (66) and Sam Ryder (64) another shot back.
Conditions were warm, calm and ideal for scoring — and it showed. Tony Finau had a 62 to take the lead as the final groups were teeing off but finished the day seven shots behind, and Baylor School graduate Luke List and Denny McCarthy each posted a 63. List was tied for 13th at 14 under.
THE COLONY, Texas — Jaye Marie Green sometimes struggles not to look too far ahead, and she had a double dose of that during the third round of the Volunteers of America Classic.
The 25-year-old American caught herself thinking about becoming only the second player in LPGA Tour history with a 59, and also on her mind was the potential first win of her career on the top women’s circuit. By the end of the day, she was happy enough with a 7-under 64 and a one-shot lead over Cheyenne Knight.
Green started with six birdies in seven holes and eight birdies through 10 holes. She ran into a few problems down the stretch, saved herself with two big putts and wound up with her first lead going into the final round. She was at 14-under 199 after 54 holes.
“If it’s my time to shoot in the 50s, it will happen,” Green said. “But it didn’t, and I was happy with how things went.”
Knight, the 22-year-old Texan with plenty of support at Old American Golf Club, birdied the last hole for a 67 to get into the final group. Katherine Perry (66) and Brittany Altomare (68) were two shots behind in third.
None of the leading four players has won on the LPGA Tour, and for Knight and Perry, full eligibility for next year is also at stake in the final full field of the year. Perry is No. 118 on the tour money list, while Knight is No. 120. Both likely need to finish in the top five to earn enough money to crack the top 100 and avoid going to an eight-round qualifier.
Rahm surges ahead
MADRID — Jon Rahm shot an 8-under 63 to match the course record and take a fiveshot lead into the final round of the Spanish Open.
The 24-year-old Spaniard, who is trying to repeat as tournament champion and secure a fifth European Tour victory, is the highest-ranked golfer in the field at No. 5. Rahm had a back-nine 28 to charge to the front at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid.
The crowd favorite was at 17-under 196 for 54 holes. He had consecutive bogeys after starting the third round with three birdies in his first seven holes, made birdies on Nos. 12-15 and then eagled the par-4 16th.
Tied for second were Rafa Cabrera Bello (70) and Samuel del Val (69), who are also from Spain, one stroke ahead of Sweden’s Jens Dantorp (65). Spain’s Adri Arnaus (72), South Africa’s Zander Lombard (69) and Australia’s Jason Scrivener (68) were tied for fifth.