Rodgers takes lead as bid for spot in Augusta looms
Patrick Rodgers shot a 1-under 71 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead into the final round of the Valero Texas Open, with his first PGA Tour title and Masters spot at stake.
Making his 235th tour start, the 30-year-old Rodgers had a 12-under 204 total at the Oaks Course at TPC San Antonio.
“I think we all know what's at stake out here with a win,” Rodgers said. “There's a lot of guys chasing, and great players out here. There's no better place to be than to have an advantage, but it's going to take a great round in order to get it done.”
Canadian Corey Conners, the 2019 Texas Open winner, was second after a 69. Matt Kuchar was a shot back on the 18th tee, but he made a double bogey for a 69 to end up third at 9 under. Chris Kirk (69) and Sam Stevens (68) were 8 under.
Kuchar was one of three notable names to crawl up the leaderboard Saturday. Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington, at age 51, parred his first 10 holes, then shot a back-nine 32 for a 68. He was 7 under. Former Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama was 6 under after a 68.
Rodgers led by three coming into the third round. He and Conners each birdied the drivable 331-yard 17th hole when they chipped close with their second shots.
ZHANG WINS AT AUGUSTA >> Stanford's Rose Zhang won the Augusta National Women's Amateur on Saturday, but it wasn't easy.
Staked to a five-shot lead, she was 4-over par through seven holes when the final round at the home of the Masters was delayed more than three ours by storms. She made a bad decision on the par-5 15th to go for the green and went in the water. And she had to watch Jenny Bae stand over a 20-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole with a chance to win.
One of Zhang's few easy shots Saturday was her final stroke, tapping in for par from inches away on the second extra hole to beat Bae in a playoff no one saw coming.
“It's always very hard to play on a very difficult golf course, and Augusta National is no exceptiion. Every mistake is sort of magnified,” Zhang said.
Zhang closed with a 4-over 76 and got help at the end.
Bae, a senior at Georgia, pulled her approach on No. 10 in the second playoff hole, the ball stopping under a bush that restricted her swing. She punched out up to and across the elevated green into a bunker and blasted out for her fourth shot.
Zhang now has the U.S. Women's Amateur, an NCAA title at Stanford and the Augusta National Women's Amateur. KOEPKA GETS HOT >> Brooks Koepka shot a 6-under 65 for a three-shot lead in LIV Golf-Orlando on the weekend before he heads for the Masters. Koepka played bogey-free at Orange County National. Sebastian Munoz of Colombia, who followed his 62 with an evenpar 71, was second. Mito Pereira (66), Laurie Canter (66) and Patrick Reed (67) were four shots back.
Auto racing
SMITH WINS XFINITY RACE >> Chandler Smith outran John Hunter Nemechek out of a restart with six laps to go Saturday at Richmond Raceway to win his first NASCAR Xfinity Series race. Nemechek chose the inside lane on a restart with 12 laps left, relegating Smith to the outside. When another caution came for a crash at the back of the field, Smith had taken the lead and chose the outside for the sprint to the finish.
Smith won in just his 10th career start in the series. Nemechek was second, followed by Josh Berry, Kaz Grala and Cole Custer. Justin Allgaier, one of four drivers contending for the Dash 4 Cash $100,000 bonus, gambled by stopping under green for his last set of tires with about 40 laps to and was cruising through the field.
Tennis
KVITOVA OUTLASTS RYBAKINA >> Twelfth-seeded Petra Kvitova won the Miami Open in her 13th appearance, beating seventhseeded Elena Rybakina with a marathon tiebreaker in a 7-6 (14), 6-2 victory Saturday. The 33-year-old Kvitova, 10 years older than her opponent, snapped Rybakina's 13-match winning streak and halted her bid to win the Sunshine Double (Indian Wells and Miami Open).
It was Kvitova 30th WTA singles title and first one since 2018 in Madrid.