The PGA Championship: Day 3
August 13 2011
6:45 pm Tough finish means Scott has chance
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — At five shots back entering the final round, Adam Scott still has a chance to win his first career major championship.
“You can make up six shots on the last four holes,” joked Scott after an even-par 70 Saturday.
What the Aussie was referring to wasn’t that a player could make up those strokes with birdies or eagles, but rather by the mistakes that other players could make coming in. And there have certainly been plenty of them so far — just ask Luke Donald.
Scott, on the other hand, has played the 507-yard par-4 18th well for the most part with two pars and a double bogey sandwiched in between.
“It’s a fiddly finishing hole,” Scott said. “It’s probably a great par-5 from 570, but it’s a very fiddly par-4 from 500 or 480.”
Fiddly, in Australian terms, is a euphemism for a much tougher word.
It might not be a great hole in many players eyes, but Scott knows it’s going to take two great shots to win there Sunday, and if he can string together some birdies early, post a number who knows what will happen, especially given the lack of major experience atop the leaderboard.
“It wouldn’t be a very comfortable position to be standing on the 15th tee with a one-shot lead and someone in the clubhouse,” Scott said. “I’ve got no pressure on me [Sunday]; I can just go out and go for it as far as I’m concerned.”
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Make it your tournament Adam
BIG DAY IN U.S.A. the yanks are finally going to get their there major, it’s just a matter of who it will be . surely they can’t lose this one, it’s been a strange tournament with a lot of failures by big names and over rated up-coming superstars [TIGER REPLACEMENTS] anyway at least we don’t have to watch someone sweep away the oposition with a BROOMSTICK.
I am rooting for you all the way Adam.You deserve to be a major champion!!!
Go Adam. Shoot low and atleast get Top 5 (if not the win).
Usually 5 strokes and 7 players is a little too much to overcome in a major but this leaderboard is inexperienced. Schwartzel has proven he has the ability to close brilliantly. Scott played well for a change at the Masters as well. I suspect that this will be a major where the winner doesn’t come from the last group. Honestly, Stricker has to be considered my favorite at this point. I never would have picked him before the weekend. Anybody at -2 should feel that if they can get to -5, that would be an intimidating number.
I like Donald but I gave up on him after the Open Championship. Same with Westwood, I gave up on him last year. He doesn’t choke but he doesn’t do anything special either. Just doesn’t seem to have it. Jason Day should come back next year and beyond because he really did close well at Augusta, he just got beat.
personly i think this should be called the p.g.a. chokers championship , stricker,scott,duffner, are non finishers braddley failed last week, verplank hangs around ,and steeles last rounds scoring is not impressive .the others good enough could be too far back ? its a lottery.
Attack early. Playing defensively will not win the PGA. Good luck I am sure you can do it!
Hao……
You don’t like the long putter (unless tw starts using one, of course…lol). That means there shouldn’t be any hybrid irons, hybrid drivers and putters using your logic……
Following your logic, everyone should play with the same standardized set of clubs and all the same length – even though everyone have different heights and swing actions. Maybe all the players should have to wear the same size and colour clothes and hats. If they don’t fit, bad luck. How about no advertising on hats and bags? Sounds like communism to me.
Your lack of understanding of the rules of golf is almost perfect.
Your love of tw has blinded you to all the great athletes that regularly play the tours – men and women. Get out of the house and enjoy watching all the golfers play a tournament. They are really fun to watch and a great day out.
ROO-, your dead right i dont, they use to have a level playing field once,but not anymore. tiger mwas to good for them so they decided to change everything ,balls clubs even reducing par 5s ,anything to stop him and help others,personally i think if you lose your nerve bad luck. what i would like to know is when is all this new invention going to stop,as its getting out of hand .there are a lot of golfers who im sure would love to try it but tradition prevents them. case in point davis love, tom watson, ect how manny more tournaments would they have won with it . ernie was trialling one im not sure if hes using or not .id be surprised if if that continued as i thought he would be a traditionalist . tiger would never use one.
Hao, should they still use the gutta percha ball? Should they still use a hickory shaft? Should they still make irons out of iron? Come on, golf technology has been advancing the sport for hundreds of years. Hundreds! As for a long putter, have you ever tried one. I hate them! I ahve no idea how anybody can want to learn that way of putting but they’ve been around now for about 25 years. They’re not going anywhere and they don’t give anybody an advantage. They are there for anybody who has the desirfe to use them. If Woods continues to struggle with his putter, he may want to use one as well. Maybe he’s already practising with one.
One thing they have done is make a more standardized golf ball. I remember when the UK ball was smaller than our north American golf ball. We’d come across them once in awhile as kids fishing them out of the river because obviously we couldn’t afford to buy balls. Anyway we’d try them. That was a disadvantage for all American golfers who went over to compete in the British Open but I’d say some of the faired quite well in the 70′s. Nicklaus finished no worse than 5th that entire decade over there and he was 3rd or better 8 times in the 70′s. I forget when they changed the ball size. Maybe somebody else here does.
I also don’t think that there was anything wrong with Snead putting between his legs. They made it illegal but it was innovative. It was something that worked for him but I don’t recall it catching on. Bernhard Langer started all that cross over putting and claw grip and I’m pretty sure he was the one who first devised a long putter. Good for him, he wasn’t cheasting he was being innovative. Equipment changes are there for everybody and you better believe Woods isn’t using the same equipment he used in 1997. He employs his choice of new equipment just like everybody else.
good one brian -desperation is the reason they try them,i do believe they do help people who are nervous especially on short putts o- 4 metres i think they help control the right hand,or put it to sleep as to speak ,[SIMILAR TO DRIVING AUTOMATIC CAR AND BREAKING WITH LEFT FOOT]. PLUS I HATE THE SIGHT OF THEM, GOLF WOULD BE GREAT TO WATCH WITH HALF THE FIELD USING . for u mabyee but not for me.
I don’t like the sight of them either and as I said, I can’t ever see myself use them. Desperation, obviously but it still isn’t an advantage and the equipment isn’t being developed to level the playing field so they can compete agaisnt Tiger. By the way, Tiger Proofing Augusta was a term borrowed from the 60′s when they tried Arnie and Jack proofing it. Nothing has changed, Augusta has always been a bombers course because Bobby Jones designed it for his own game. In his day, he was a fairly long hitter but he used hickory shafts. That was one reason why Jack played a game with which Jones was not familiar. Still probably the most eloquent compliment in golf or any sport
If they decide it’s unfair they’ll eventually change it. Square grooves are an example. When did they come out with those around 1990. Nicklaus said it was cheating and Watson agreed. Watson had no choice but to use them, I think Nicklaus was old enough that he didn’t care, he didn’t make the switch. Anyway, the point is, they do review equipment. I’d like them to standardise golf balls more, I mean it’s a wonderful spactacle to see Bubba hit a 415 yard drive but it’s also insane. I think a 300 yard drive should be difficult for the pros. I think they should all be able to do it but it shouldn’t be something they try for unless it’s a par 5 or a short par 4. That’s more of an issue with me than the long handle putters
if you look at golf through fans perspective ,over the last 2-3 years all the want to talk about is jack vs tiger which one is better?to me its tiger ive heard jack say i could never do that after a brilliant shot. jack in his day had a level field,tom probably would have taken a major or 2 off him with long putter [his short putting terrible]and there were others ,there equipment were similar or same . this day and age tiger use to hit balls longer then most ,so they change equipment to bring everyone closer together .tigers mental prowess head shoulders above everyone ; [bring in long putter] bernard freddy,love renowned terrible short putters .give them long handle improved out of sight ,love hasn’t changed yet . noneone will convince me broom doesn’t help . sorry trying to keep short.
john senden is another good example and many more top golfers can’t put .
i noticed earlier you tipped stricker to win / if you put your money on him your nerves won’t be to good either. i dont think he can win.
Tiger doesn’t seem to have mental prowess now but I’m not going to take anything away from Woods,I’m also not going to rationalize for him. He’s had a fine career. Jones said Jack plays a game with which I am not familair. Gretzky has said that he wouldn’t even be able to play in todays NHL, they’re too big and fast. What do you want them to say? Woods will offer the same sort of compliment to whoever it is 20 or 30 years from now. Jack has also said that wouldn’t be serving himself much justice if he said Woods was better than him. When he was 24 said that they would never know who was better him or Jones. He said the same thing about him and Woods and both times people got upset by with him. When he was young he was brash and arrogant, when he was older he was insecure but both times he was correct. Palmer said he’d rip anybody apart on the tour today. Take all of those statements with a grain of salt.
It doesn’t sound like you know very much about golf history. Watson never had the chance to play agaisnt Nicklaus while Jack was in his prime but Jack finished second to Watson 4 times as he aged. I remember hating Watson in 77 because he beat Jack head to head at the Masters then again at The Open Championship. I wanted JAck to be the first to win 20 professional majors and Tom was making that impossible. Well, I was only a kid but I quickly learned to be a big fan of Watson and he remains one of my all-time favorite golfers. I know you must be young and you’ve grown up watching Woods. You’re fully entitled to feel he’s the greatest. Some people of Hogans generation maintained that he was better than Jack and they pointed out that Hogan won an unoffical US Open during WWII, so to them, Hogan won 5 US Opens. There probably should be an asterisk there but it doesn’t mean he won 5.
brian i don’t know who you are ,but you know your golf , it’s been a pleasure talking to you ,there’s one thing i hate more then broomsticks [ITS TYPING ] IM OFF TO THE T.A.B. TO PUT MY MONEY ON . STEELE &KEEGAN . WITH AVERAGE CONFIDENCE .CHEERS BYE.
At least you’re not one of those Woods fans who only watch when he’s playing, so you’ll probably learn to appreciate who ever comes next whether it’s Rory or Ishi or somebody elose. And 25 years from now if somebody comes along and wins more majors than Woods and maybe Nicklaus, you’ll probably still say that Woods is better. You won’t be wrong but you won’t be right either but you should enjoy the guys career. I’ve enjoyed watching Woods play golf, I’m not his biggest fan but it doesn’t mean I can’t marvel at his greatness.
Youprobably only pay attention to his spectacular recovery shots but it’s those erratic previous shots that have always made me wonder how long he could last. That and when he needed surgery at age 26. At that time I thought, “Uh oh, surgery already? That’s ominous.” So far nothing has changed my mind about his prospects as he ages. That’s one of the reasons they loved Palmer so much. Most of his army didn’t really play golf, they discovered it because of him and admittedly, it’s more exciting than watching the greatest tactician of them all, Jack play. But it’s also probably why Palmer stopped winning majors at 34. Well, that and finishing 2nd to Nicklaus a few times.
Hao, if you read this tomorrow, Keegan might not be a bad bet. I’m just hoping it’s a wild, unpredictable day. This years Masters was one of the best ever IMO. I hope we see the same thing tomorrow and I hope somebody who begins the day at -2 wins.
brian your not going to believe this ,i put the money on and when im walking out the golf is on the t/v ,both keegan &steele use long putters . i haven’t seen any of this tournament and i have not seen either of them play before.if i new that i wouldn’t have put money on ,. maybee someone is giving me a message. i think if someone comes from way back ,it would be swartzel, westy karlsson ,donald, or a miracle michelson. i would love your opinion on his short game compared to other generation . i would also like your prediction for 2011 -2012 regarding tiger. dont be shy i have broad shoulders.
Brian, I think it would be folly to back either of the two overnight/3rd round Leaders because of their relative inexperience on what is a reasonably tough course, especially those last four ones. I would go for Scott Verplank to edge out David Toms – experience counts in the final round of a Major, thus these two old turkeys should gobble the rest (grin). Just hope the weather stays fine with not too much wind.
Hao,
Tiger told me he doesn’t like you.
I hope Scott Verplank wins!
Hao, stop posting the same Tiger nonsense post in ever report. He isn’t even playing the weekend.
Regards,
Everyone Else.
CRIKEY BEN THATS BAD NEWS- NOT SURPRISING BUT ,i dont even like me.
Hao, do you like Tigger’s former caddies Steve & Fluff, because they’ve both ‘moved on’ ? Tigger’s having trouble moving on , he still think he’s Numero Uno, but he’s sadly mistaken. Maybe he will get lost in chesterfield rugby and get his kicks that way.
After that very poor chip shot of Bradley has just gone in the water , looks like Dufner is pretty certain to win now.
Ship / oops, don’t count ya chickens; could be a playoff OR a win to Bradley. “Never say Never, huh”
WE’LL BE BACK/.