65 gives Harman 1-shot lead in Travelers Championship
CROMWELL, Conn. — Brian Harman has always looked up to Bubba Watson, who preceded him as a standout left-hander for the University of Georgia Bulldogs.
On Sunday, Watson will begin the day looking up the leaderboard at Harman as the two begin play in the final round of the Travelers Championship.
Harman birdied the 18th hole for his second consecutive 5-under 65 and a one-stroke lead over Watson and Canadian Graham DeLaet on Saturday.
Looking for his second PGA Tour victory, Harman had a bogey-free round to take a 14-under 196 total into the final round at TPC River Highlands.
Harman hit a 149-yard wedge to 4 feet on the par4 18th. He sank the putt after Watson, who led by two strokes after the each of the first two rounds, missed a 17-footer.
“Bubba’s a lot of fun to play golf with,” Harman said. “He was a little before me at Georgia, so I always looked up to him, was always really proud of the way he was doing and we were always rooting for him at Georgia.”
This is the second 54hole lead for Harman, who won the 2014 John Deere Classic from the front on the final day.
“He’s a solid player,” Watson said. “It sounds funny saying this, but he’s like a little bulldog.”
Watson shot a 68 in a light rain after opening with a tournament-best 62 on Thursday and adding a 67 in the second round.
He needed a bit of luck Saturday after his tee shot on the par-4 15th hole went left and into the woods. He got a fortuitous bounce high off a tree trunk and the ball dropped back over the gallery and into the fairway bunker. He was able to save par from there.
“It hit the tree and everybody roared,” he said. “I had to ask the camera guy, and he said it was in the bunker.”
DeLaet had five birdies and grabbed a share of the lead with an eagle on the 15th, putting his drive within 6 feet of the pin.
He had a chance to move to 14 under but left an 18foot birdie putt on 18th just short.
DeLaet was in a threeway tie for first place with Watson entering the final round two years ago before finishing third. He has never won on the PGA Tour, and had back surgery for a pinched nerve in 2011, a problem that he says still bothers him.
“The last couple months I’ve been moving really well and feeling a lot better,” He said. “My golf game is coming around too, which is nice.”
Brandt Snedeker, Paul Casey and Zach Johnson were 11 under. Snedeker had a 63 to match the best round of the day, and Casey and Johnson shot 64.
OTHER EVENTS
USGA Senior Open at Sacramento, Calif.: Bernhard Langer and Jeff Maggert shared the lead over a bunched field heading into the final round.
Langer shot a 2-under 68 and Maggert had a 70 on Saturday. They were at 5-under 205 for the championship at Del Paso Country Club, where conditions cooled off after consecutive days above 100 degrees.
But the competition remained hot, with eight players within a shot of the lead. That includes Tom Watson, Kenny Perry and defending champion Colin Montgomerie.
“It’s like a horse race,” Watson said. “Getting close to the wire.”
The 65-year-old Watson, who was tied with Maggert and Peter Fowler through 36 holes, salvaged a tough round with a 71. Perry shot a 64 to surge into contention, and Montgomerie had a 70.
Fowler shot a 72 and was among six players at 3 under.
LPGA Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Rogers, Ark.: Na Ye Choi matched her LPGA Tour career low with an 8-under 63 to surge to the top of the leaderboard at 13 under.
Choi, a South Korean who won the season-opening Coates Golf Championship for her eighth LPGA Tour title, made a 45-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole for a back-nine 29.
Mi Jung Hur and Anna Nordqvist were tied for second at 11 under. Defending champion and local favorite Stacy Lewis, an Arkansas alumna, topped a group at 9 under.