Schauffele breezes into 2-shot lead in Scotland
NORTH BERWICK, Scotland — Xander Schauffele played all the right bounces and made all the key putts until the final two holes Saturday in the Scottish Open and then felt as though he had to settle for a twoshot lead.
Right when he was starting to pull away from the field, Schauffele closed with a pair of bogeys at The Renaissance Club that made it difficult to appreciate an otherwise stellar round. He matched the low score of the windy day with a 4-under 66.
And then he headed straight to the range.
“I had pretty much everything going,” Schauffele said. “I was judging the bounces well and making the putts I needed to and getting up-and-down when I was missing the green. Six birdies through 16, no complaints. And a tough finish.”
Schauffele was at 7under 203, two ahead of Rafa Cabrera Bello of Spain, who had a 67 and boosted his hopes of getting one of three spots into the British Open next week at St. Andrews.
Jordan Spieth had two eagles on the back nine, one of them with a lob wedge from just over 100 yards on the 15th hole, and had a 66 that put him right in the mix. Spieth was three shots behind in a group that included fellow Texan Ryan Palmer.
Cameron Tringale has been sliding since he opened with a 61 in relatively benign conditions along the Firth of Forth. He went from a threeshot lead to a five-shot deficit. Tringale had an eagle on the third hole and nothing but pars and bogeys the rest of the way for a 74.
Schauffele was dogged for the longest time for not having a PGA Tour title of his own since the start of 2019. He did have an Olympic gold medal from Tokyo last summer, and he partnered with Patrick Cantlay to win the PGA Tour’s team event in New Orleans.
Now the 28-year-old Californian might be hitting his stride. He is coming off a victory two weeks ago at the Travelers Championship, with one eye toward the final major of the year on the Old Course at St. Andrews.
“You see players do it all the time. You get in the good swing of things, start to get comfortable seeing certain shots and seeing certain putts go in,” Schauffele said. “Players always have good stretches and I’m trying to make this one of my best.”
He was ahead by as many as four shots until he tugged his tee shot on the par-3 17th and it rolled down a ridge and off the green. On the tough closing hole into the wind, he pulled his tee shot into the rough, went behind a pair of bunkers and missed a 10-foot par putt.
It’s crowded at the top if Schauffele falters. Spieth was joined at 4-under 206 by Palmer and Jordan Smith of England, with U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick in the group five behind.
Cejka, Kelly lead Senior Players
Jerry Kelly shot a 5under 65 in Akron, Ohio, for a share of the thirdround lead with Alex Cejka in the Bridgestone Senior Players Championship.
Kelly had six birdies and a bogey to match Cejka at 9-under 201 on Firestone Country Club’s South Course.