Johnson, Potter Jr. share lead at Pebble Beach

SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda — Brandon Hagy and Chad Ramey avoided the worst of the wind Thursday afternoon, each with a 6-under 65 to share the lead in the Butterfield Bermuda Championship when the opening round at Port Royal was halted by darkness. RELATED: Leaderboard | Weather maintains advantage, but rules staff makes it fair contest | ‘Brutal’ wind and rain lead to wild day in Bermuda For those who started in the morning, it might have been easier playing in the dark. “You see winds like this, but normally you don’t play in them,” said Matt Fitzpatrick of England, who had every right to be satisfied with his even-par 71. The wind and spots of heavy rain were so fierce that play was suspended briefly in the morning. And while it eased slightly in the afternoon, the gusts were strong enough that short putts were nervy and judging the distance on approach shots was key. Ramey managed to finish off a bogey-free round right before play was halted. Hagy made nine birdies to offset his bogeys, one of which was a 2-foot par putt he missed on the par-5 seventh hole. There was not much he could do about it — that was largely due to a gust. Vincent Whaley had a 66, while Congaree Palmetto Championship winner Garrick Higgo, Seamus Power of Ireland and Danny Lee were among those at 67. The group at 68 included Patrick Reed. He opened with three straight birdies only to give most of it back with a double bogey. This was a day for flighting the ball, such as the chip 8-iron from 118 yards. For so much of the day, the actual yardage was irrelevant. Reed was coming off a bogey on the 16th when he drove into a hazard on the par-5 17th. He took a penalty drop, and then hit 6-iron that plopped down near the hole and dropped for a most unusual eagle. His playing partners, Higgo and Willett, all drove into the hazard on the 17th and they managed to collectively play the hole in 3 under. When play was stopped, 33 players were under par, some having to return Friday morning to complete the first round. Only six of those scores under par came from the morning. Russell Knox, who grew up near Inverness in Scotland, was among the early starters and had few complaints with a 72. He was happy to be standing up. “We were down on the ground holding an umbrella. My fingers were cramping I’m holding on so tight, and it was pouring rain as hard as it’s ever rained,” he said. “It was an interesting day.” Hagy got a sense of that when he started in the afternoon and saw so few scores under par. Greyson Sigg and Austin Eckroat had the best rounds of the early starters at 68. They played with Seth Reeves, who had a 69. They represented half of the scores under par from the morning side of the draw. “I think it laid down a little bit for us, but it was still pretty stout,” Hagy said. “But I hit a lot of good putts and they went in. I think there’s going to be some times where you get gusts and the ball doesn’t go in, but you kind of have to keep your head down and keep trying to hit some good shots.” It’s already been a week like no other at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, which is offering full FedExCup points because it is not opposite the World Golf Championships event in Shanghai, canceled for the second straight year because of the pandemic. That means the winner gets a TOUR card for three years and an invite to the Masters, and only four players in the field already are eligible for Augusta National in April. Brian Gay, the defending champion, was bumped from his flight to Bermuda because the plane was too heavy. He arrived on Tuesday afternoon and didn’t get to play a practice round when the pro-am was canceled. Gay opened with a 75. “We definitely got the easier part of the day there in the afternoon, but it’s still a strong enough wind that your score could get away from you if you lost control of your ball,” Power said. “Hanging in there was the thing today.”

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Here are nine tidbits from the third round of A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. The Old White TPC at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulfur Springs, West Virginia hosts for the eighth time and measures 7,287 yards and plays to Par-70. Know Thy Enemy These were the top-10 selected golfers in the PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf game presented by SERVPRO. With temperatures in dipping into the 70’s the breeze blowing, The Old White TPC showed its teeth, to a degree, in Round 3. After giving up a round of 61 in the first two rounds the lowest total on moving day was just 65. The track and the greens both firmed up nicely and there’s hardly a wonder why the top 10 was turned upside down. The Final Pairing Kelly Kraft has never held the 36-hole lead before and now he’s never lost it. He’ll want to forget he played the three holes in two-over par as he saw his three-shot lead evaporate as he shares the 54-hole lead. The good news is he finished the day in red numbers (69) and he’s 13-under on the Par-4 holes. He’ll be playing alongside another looking for win No. 1 on TOUR, Harold Varner, III, so that should help both of them relax. Varner’s last bogey was 39 holes ago as he posted 66 after 64 in Round 2 to share the lead. The last time we checked in with Varner he was putting all four rounds under-par at TPC Sawgrass for T7, his only top 10 of the year. He’ll be looking to join the first-timers club in the winner’s circle tomorrow. He closed with 67 last year in much different circumstances. Na-ht Out of It Kevin Na backed up his 63 in Round 2 with the co-low round of the day, 65, in Round 3 and sits just one back of the lead. He’ll have no problem stalking two players who have never won as he looks to pick up his first win since 2011. He closed with 61 at Trinity Forest for solo fourth at the AT&T Byron Nelson in May and his only top 10 here was posting 65 in 2012. Country Roads, Take Me Home Bubba Watson isn’t worried about stats or trends and shouldn’t be as well as he’s playing. He’s never led this week so he can join the previous seven winners in keeping that streak alive if he does the business tomorrow. He matched the low round of the day on Saturday with 65 as he led the field in SG: off the tee, tee to green, driving distance and proximity. He fired 63 on Sunday his last time out to win the Travelers so I’m not going to be surprised with another low one tomorrow! Mountain Climbing Tony Finau is looking to keep up his momentum going at The Old White TPC. His worst round of 11 is 69 and his best is 66 so I’m not surprised with his trio of 67’s this week. His third one of 2018 moved him up 10 spots to T14 as he looks to best his T7 from last year. He was second to Watson in the first three categories listed above and third in proximity. He’ll need to make a few tomorrow to get back into the top 10. I’m not betting against him as he’s T4 in birdies for the week. The Defending Champ All the talk of coming from behind to win is great but I’ll also point out that nobody has successfully defended either. Xander Schauffele doesn’t care about any stats or streaks as he became the first rookie to win The TOUR Championship last year. He’ll gladly take his chances on a course he loves as his 65 today pushes his two-year total to 27-under in seven rounds. Moving Day For the second week in a row Bronson Burgoon has forced himself into the conversation with a big round on Saturday. And for the second Saturday running it’s a 65 on Par-70 layout that’s put him in the mix. Last week he backed it up with 67 for his first top-10 TOUR finish and a trip to Carnoustie. He’ll have to feel like he’s playing with house money on Sunday as he moved up 24 spots, the most into the top 10. … J.T. Poston went out early and posted the first 65 of the as he jumped 42 spots to T18. … Brandon Harkins continues to rumble as well as his 66 leapfrogged 39 players to T21. Moving Day: Wrong Way Webb Simpson (T2) and Whee Kim (T5) both shared the worst round of the day with matching 76’s. Simpson dropped 28 spots to T30 while Kim plummeted 43 spots to T48. Simpson’s rough day affected more gamers than Kim’s to say the least. … The next step for cut-maker extraordinaire Tyler Duncan is putting together two solid WEEKEND rounds. He’s made nine cuts in a row but he dropped 52 places from T8 to T60 after 75 Saturday. I’ll keep reminding everyone that he’s a rookie playing his 26th event. Study Hall Saturday’s scoring average was the most difficult of the week but still played under-par at 69.753 (-0.247). Round 1 was 69.340 (-0.660) and Round 2 went lower at 68.636 (-1.364) before the correction in Round 3. … Varner has the cleanest card of week so far with just two bogeys and zero others. … Ollie Schniederjans (T14) has circled the most birdies thus far with 19 but has eight bogeys and a double to go with them. … Every player inside the top 10 SG: approach the green is in the top 21 save for Simpson. … Every player inside the top 10 SG: putting is T21 or better as well. … Only Varner and John Peterson (T38) played bogey-free golf in Round 3. Check yesterday’s Emergency 9 for more info on Peterson.

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Xander Schauffele wants to be the hunted rather than the hunter. The 25-year-old has already won four times on the PGA TOUR, including a World Golf Championships event and a TOUR Championship, but something about those wins has left a void he wants to fill. Schauffele is undoubtedly proud of his efforts but he came from behind in all four triumphs, something he says brings less pressure and therefore keeps him out of the most elite company on the PGA TOUR. Finishing third, 15th and second in the FedExCup over his first three seasons is incredible, but Schauffele has higher aspirations. His lone 54-hole lead came at the 2018 Open Championship where he sat tied with Jordan Spieth and Kevin Kisner, but he shot 3 over on Sunday to settle for a runner-up finish behind Francesco Molinari. So he starts his 2019-20 season at this week’s ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP in Japan with a specific goal: get more 54-hole leads, and convert them. “If I just would be in contention more, that would be awesome … The way I look at it and the way my team looks at it, I haven’t really done a whole lot,â€� Schauffele said. “It’s a little bit harsh, but it’s just sort of how I’m judged at certain times by either my dad or people on my team that give me advice, and it’s true at times. “In order for me to become more of an elite player and more of an established name I think it would be important for me to sort of play to what I know I can do at certain times versus trying to be the come‑from‑behind kid.â€� Schauffele’s first win at the 2017 Military Tribute at the Greenbrier came from three back at the 54-hole mark. Later that season he erased a two-shot deficit on Sunday to win the TOUR Championship. Last season he made up three shots at the World Golf Championships–HSBC Champions in China on the way to victory and was a distant five shots back before storming home to win the Sentry Tournament of Champions. “I don’t mind coming from behind, it’s plenty easy and more comfortable than trying to sleep on what I would imagine to be a 54‑hole lead,â€� he says. “Look at all these other players. JT (Justin Thomas) has already won 11 times. He’s a bit of an exception, too. He’s an incredible player. There’s a bunch of other guys, though, who have had 54‑hole leads who have closed them.â€� If the 2017 PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year is to get a quick start on his goal it might be in part due to some huge family support at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club this week. Schauffele estimates he’s been to Japan 10 to 12 times as his mother’s family resides in the country where she grew up from the age of 2. A huge contingent is expected to flock to the course to watch, and word is they may even have special shirts and hats for the occasion. “I’ve maxed out tickets but I’m still asking for tickets from everyone else, from other players, if they have any extra,â€� he confirms. “It’s just really cool. I haven’t been able to play in front of my mom’s family at all. It’s kind of special for me and my family. I’m assuming 30 to 40 maybe. I have a bunch of cousins, uncles, you name it.â€�

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