Eagles lift Buckley into lead
HONOLULU — Hayden Buckley started and ended the back nine at Waialae with eagles Saturday for a second straight 6-under 64, giving him a two-shot lead and creating some separation going into the final round of the Sony Open.
Buckley holed out a wedge from 133 yards on the 10th hole. He finished his day with an approach to 2 feet on the par-5 18th hole.
He was at 15-under 195, and his two-shot lead might have been the biggest surprise in a third round that at one point featured an eight-way tie for the lead.
Even now, Buckley has a long road ahead of him. In his second year on the PGA Tour, he had never had the lead after any round. And five players are within three shots of the lead on a tour where it seems no lead is safe. Only last week, two-time major champion Collin Morikawa lost a six-shot lead on the back nine at Kapalua.
Nine of the leading 15 players at Waialae have never won on the PGA Tour.
Buckley led by two over Chris Kirk (68), Ben Taylor (65) and David Lipsky (66), the Californian who has spent the majority of his career in Asia.
DP World: Continental Europe will take a two-point lead into the final day of the Hero Cup after extending its advantage over Britain & Ireland in the afternoon foursomes on Saturday. The inaugural tournament is giving European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald a chance to assess players under matchplay pressure ahead of the contest with the United States outside Rome in September. Francesco Molinari’s team was a point ahead overnight and maintained that advantage when the teams took 2.5 points each from the five foursomes matches on Saturday morning at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. Continental Europe then finished the afternoon 3-2 to take an 8.56.5 lead ahead of the Sunday singles. Britain & Ireland captain Tommy Fleetwood recorded two wins from two on the second day. He linked up with Tyrrell Hatton to beat Sepp Straka and Thomas Detry in a morning match that went to 18 before partnering Jordan Smith to a 2&1 win over Alex Noren and Thomas Pieters. Three birdies in their last five holes for Callum Shinkwin and Matt Wallace sealed a 2&1 win over Antoine Rozner and Adrian Meronk, but the other three afternoon games went Continental Europe’s way. Molinari partnered Nicolai Hojgaard for the third straight match and make it 2.5 points from three by beating Ewen Ferguson and Richard Mansell 2&1. Elsewhere, Detry holed a 52-foot birdie putt on 17 to put him and Straka one up on Shane Lowry and Hatton, and they held on for the point before Victor Perez and Guido Migliozzi ended Robert MacIntyre’s hopes of a third straight victory with a 2&1 triumph over the Scot and Seamus Power.
Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira of Argentina had a record day at Grand Reserve to build a four-shot lead Saturday in the Latin America Amateur Championship, leaving him one round away from a spot in the Masters and U.S. Open. Fernandez de Oliveira, who missed a playoff by one shot last year in the Dominican Republic, tied the tournament record with a 9-under 63. The senior at Arkansas was at 18-under, breaking by eight shots the 54-hole record in the championship, which began in 2015. He also tied a record with nine birdies. Luis Carrera of Mexico, who had the 36-hole lead, had a 68 and was four shots back. Vicente Marzilio of Argentina (66) and Juan Perico of Peru (67) were another shot behind.