Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Steady Bradley soars to front
Wet conditions don’t stifle rally
POTOMAC, Md. — Keegan Bradley did nothing special on the only easy scoring day at the Wells Fargo Championship, opening with an even-par 70 that left him around the cut line.
Since the conditions got tougher, Bradley has been the best player at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm.
Bradley shot the lowest score for the second straight day Saturday, a 3-under-par 67 that gave him a three-day total of 8-under 202 and a two-shot lead over Max Homa (71) in British Open weather on a U.S. Open-style course.
About 2 inches of rain has fallen since Friday morning, yet the low-lying course near the Potomac River has held up well enough to avoid delays. Temperatures dropped into the low 40s on Saturday.
“It felt like a Patriots playoff game out there in December,” said Bradley, who grew up in New England. “It was fun, but I’m glad to be done.”
Bradley was one of four players to shoot in the 60s. The scoring average was 73.7, the highest relative to par on the PGA Tour since the 2020 U.S. Open’s final round at Winged Foot.
Though he has only one win in the past nine years, the 35-year-old Bradley has been solid recently, with top-10 finishes in three of his past five events, including fifth at the Players Championship during another week of bad weather.
The eye-opening number for a player whose putter has held him back: Bradley ranks second in the field in this tournament in putting by the PGA Tour’s “strokes gained” metric.
A win by Bradley would move him into the world’s top 60, making him exempt for the U.S. Open in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Jason Day’s retooled swing didn’t hold up for a third straight day. The leader after 18 and 36 holes, Day began struggling with his driver before it spilled over to the rest of the bag, and he shot 79 to fall seven strokes off the lead.
Day found the same pond on consecutive holes — a driver that never crossed dry land on the par-4 fourth, leading to triple bogey, and a 3-wood that hooked violently on the fifth.
Day appeared to lose his grip on the club when he hit another hook into a water hazard with his second shot on the par-5 10th, even though he had half a dozen gloves hanging from the ribs of his umbrella.
■ DP World: At Sutton Coldfield, England, 376thranked Thorbjorn Olesen finished eagle-birdie in a 3-under 69 for an 11-under 205 total to take a threeshot lead into the Betfred British Masters’ final round as he bids for his first win in four years amid a career rebuild. The tour suspended the 32-year-old Dane in 2019 after he was accused of sexual assault, and he was acquitted in December. Marcus Armitage (70) and second-round leader Hurly Long (73) were tied for second.
■ Champions: At Duluth, Ga., David Toms cashed in on a four-shot swing on the 15th hole in a 1-under 71 for an 8-under 136 total to take a two-stroke lead over Ken Duke (73) into the Mitsubishi Electric Classic’s final round. Duke’s 20-foot birdie putt rolled 35 yards past the hole at No. 15, and he made triple bogey. Ernie Els (68) climbed into a five-way tie for third at 4 under.