Westwood, 48, still competing

Has Bay Hill lead after 7-under 65

ORLANDO, Fla. — Lee Westwood isn’t just killing time waiting to become old enough to compete against guys his own age.

He might not be able to contemplate driving a par 5 — that sideshow Saturday at Bay Hill belonged to Bryson DeChambeau. Westwood is more graybeard than flat belly.

He also showed at the Arnold Palmer Invitational he can hang with players nearly half his age, posting his lowest score at Bay Hill with a 7-under 65 that gave him a one-shot lead over DeChambeau and Corey

Conners.

“It’s nice to still be playing in these tournaments. You’ve got to be top 50 in the world,” Westwood said. “And if you would have said to me 20 years ago will you still be top 50 in the world at 48 I might have been slightly skeptical.

“And it just shows that I’m still capable of playing well in these tournaments with all the good young players around me and obviously contending, because that’s what I’m doing this week.”

DeChambeau, who shot a 68, was entertaining. Only one of his six birdies got all the attention, mainly because the reigning U.S. Open champion has teased all week about taking all the water on the right-to -left bending par-5 sixth.

The fans began cheering. Out came the driver. DeChambeau gave it a rip and raised his arms, a scene right out of the World Long Drive Championship, and then thrust both arms in the air again when he saw the shot clear the water, run through the fairway and into the rough, 70 yards from the hole.

“Oh, man, I felt like a kid again, for sure,” DeChambeau said. “It was exciting, especially when you pull it off. It was almost like winning a tournament. It’s kind of the feeling I had. It was like, ‘Oh, I did it.’ I got the same chills and feeling when I saw it clear and there was no splash. I gave the fans what they wanted.”