Winner’s Bag: Seamus Power, Butterfield Bermuda Championship

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — Charles Howell III had a 2-under 68 for a one-shot lead Saturday in The RSM Classic, along with a reminder that winning for the first time in more than 11 years won’t be easy. With two quick birdies, Howell stretched his lead to five shots. By the end of the third round, his lead was down to one shot over PGA TOUR rookie Cameron Champ and Jason Gore, who each shot 66 and made up ground on the back nine of the Seaside course at Sea Island. Howell was at 16-under 194 as he tries to end 332 starts on the PGA TOUR without winning. Champ is trying to win for the second time this fall. Webb Simpson shot a 63 and was only three shots behind.

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The guy with a swoosh on his shirt and a Tiger head cover on his driver looked pretty good. So did Tiger Woods. RELATED: Full leaderboard Charlie Woods, the 11-year-old son of the 15-time major champion, is playing in the PNC Championship for the first time. And according to his dad, he played just like he does at home. Never mind that he had some 250 people following along, more than his dad had watching him at the Masters. Charlie confidently twirled his club before shots, quickly picked up the tee on his drives and even pumped his fist on the par-5 third hole with a 3-wood into 3 feet for eagle. They finished the scramble format at 10-under 62, four shots behind Matt Kuchar and son Cameron. "I don’t really care about my game," Woods said. "I’m just making sure that Charlie has the time of his life. And he’s doing that." Charlie Woods is the youngest to play in this 36-hole event that began in 1995 and their sons, and now includes all family members. He loves the game enough to start playing in a few junior events, and he had no qualms playing before a crowd or the cameras. A television camera was positioned some 15 feet away to the right of Charlie on the opening tee at The Ritz-Carlton Club at Grande Lakes, and he was a little quick with his swing, pulling it to the left. They used his father’s tee shot and wedge into 2 feet — Charlie made the birdie putt. That was the last time Team Woods used Tiger’s tee shot on a long hole until No. 15. It helped that the 11-year-old was able to use a forward tee, 100 yards ahead of the PGA TOUR players on some holes. Woods was not surprised from what he’s seen at home. This was different — a tournament with pros, a scorecard that had to be signed, a television audience. But it sure looked the same. "I’ve seen this all along. Probably not a lot of people have," Woods said. "A lot of the shots he hit, I’ve seen them back home at The Medalist this entire year. The junior events he played in, he hit a lot of these. It was a matter of stringing these out for 3 1/2 hours. It’s a totally different deal." The swing was smooth. The mannerisms were familiar. Charlie belted one on the par-5 fifth hole, bending over to grab his tee while the ball was still in flight. Justin Thomas, playing in the group with his father Mike, smiled and said, "God, you are so much like your dad." Waiting for Thomas to putt, father and son stood side-by-side, right leg crossed over left ankle. The Woods’ were 8 under through nine holes, capped off by Charlie making an 8-foot birdie putt on No. 9 and walking it in when the ball was a few feet away. Just like Dad. The kid had game in other ways, too. During the pro-am, Charlie hit one through the fairway into the trees. Mike Thomas, a longtime club professional whose specialty is working with juniors, was in the group ahead and playfully left a note next to Charlie’s ball that said, "Draw Hole!" On Saturday, Mike Thomas hit his drive into a bunker on the short par-4 13th. "In typical Woods’ fashion, he kept the paper," Justin Thomas said. "My dad hit in the bunker, and he took that exact paper and put it behind the ball. So a little karma there." Justin Thomas spends a lot of time with them at home, so he knew how the kid could play. Even so, Thomas said he has a different kind of nerves — for his dad and for Charlie. "I knew he was going to wow a lot of people," Thomas said. "It was cool to see him shape the ball both ways and hit great shots. We feel probably what our parents felt growing up watching us play. You want them to do well, but you can’t do anything about it. "It was competitive, it was joyful, it was memorable and we had some banter." And they get one more day. They finished with a birdie on the par-5 18th — across the water left of the fairway, a small group of people posted a banner on the bridge that said, “Charlie Woods Fan Club — and were tied for sixth. "The kid’s a gamer. He’s a grinder. He’s competitive. But he’s so young," Justin Thomas said. “I’m pulling for him. I want him to keep it fun, keep it light. It can get nasty out there with what people say. Expectations are going to be high, but I hope it remains manageable for himself. I hope he stays within himself. "There’s 11-, 12-, 13-year-olds sitting on their couch at home that can’t hit those shots on the range. And he’s doing it in front of a crowd and on national TV."

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THE OVERVIEW AVONDALE, La. – Team chemistry is the X factor at this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Whether it’s playing with a good friend, a former college teammate or someone from your home state or country, success in the team format may very well come down to which twosome gels together the best. A year ago, the winners were Jonas Blixt and Cameron Smith – a Swede and an Aussie who both live in the Jacksonville, Florida, area and have become good buddies. They beat Kevin Kisner and Scott Brown – lifelong friends from South Carolina – in a playoff that extended to Monday morning. “Obviously, we bonded pretty well last year,â€� Smith said Wednesday on the eve of his team’s defense. “Just being able to give each other a pat on the back or a slap across the face when the time was right. It definitely helped us, I think, just knowing each other so well.â€� Blixt and Smith are not the same age – Blixt, at 34, is 10 years older – but they showed that age commonality was not the biggest factor. Same for Jordan Spieth (age 24) and Ryan Palmer (age 41), who finished solo fourth. Spieth and Palmer have the Texas connection, though, even though they attended arch-rival schools – Texas for Spieth, Texas A&M for Palmer. A Longhorn and an Aggie generally are more confrontational than comforting, but they made it work last year. “We’ve played a lot of practice rounds together going back the last few years, so we know each other’s games,â€� Spieth said. “We have a good time out here.â€� Added Palmer: “I’m not sure how some of these teams are teamed together but definitely knowing this format was going to start, I wanted to play with someone I knew real well and that I was close with. It’s worked out.â€� A big key with friends is never having to apologize for a bad shot. A guilt-free conscience is conducive to lower scores. “We both know we’re not going to get a sorry from one another,â€� said Justin Thomas, who’s playing with Bud Cauley. The two former University of Alabama players tied for fifth a year ago. “Obviously I know he’s not going to try to put me in a bad spot. I don’t think he will too often, so I’m not that worried about it. If I hit one where I’m not aiming, I’ll just kind of give him a shrug and let him do his thing from the trees.â€� Playing with a friend can also make the rounds more enjoyable even for those who aren’t in contention. Jim Furyk and David Duval have combined for 30 PGA TOUR wins and are two of eight players in TOUR history to shoot 59 (with Furyk also shooting a record-low 58). But they are under no illusions this week. Duval has made just 13 starts on TOUR since 2015, and Furyk is making just his seventh start of the season. “We’re probably the rustiest team in the field,â€� Duval said. Still, they plan to have fun. They’ve known each other for a long time, and their wives are good friends. It will be a good week no matter how it plays out on the leaderboard. “You think about folks out there listening, when they go play golf, their idea of golf is hanging out with their buddies, right,â€� Furyk said. “Friends, folks they love playing golf with, enjoy being around. “That’s what this event gives us. Dave and I been friends for a long time. I enjoy his company.â€� And if they surprise some people and contend this weekend, you’ll know why. THREE TEAMS TO PONDER Patrick Reed-Patrick Cantlay Since their T-14 finish here last year, Cantlay won the PGA TOUR event in Las Vegas. We hear Reed also won a tournament. Justin Rose-Henrik Stenson Wonder if they’ll casually display their Olympic medals in the locker room just to intimidate the other teams? Bubba Watson-Matt Kuchar A new team for this year, but they have played together before – the 2014 Ryder Cup, where they lost in Four-balls to the team directly above. THE FLYOVER The closing hole at TPC Louisiana ranked as the most difficult of the four par 5s. The 585-yard 18th played to a stroke average of 4.630 – the first round with Foursomes last year was 4.988, and Four-balls in the second round was 4.313. Water runs down the entire right side of the large fairway. THE LANDING ZONE The 492-yard 12th hole, the longest par 4 at TPC Louisiana, ranked as the most difficult hole last year. The stroke average of 4.076 made it just one of four holes that played over par. Hitting a slight draw is the preferred shot off the tee, requiring a long iron with fade for the approach. Here’s a look at where all tee shots landed last year. WEATHER CHECK From PGA TOUR meteorologist Stewart Williams: “Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms will be possible Thursday morning as a cold front sweeps through the area. All of the precipitation should push east by midday, with clearing skies for the afternoon. Another fast-moving system will sweep through Friday afternoon that could produce isolated showers. Otherwise, mainly dry conditions can be expected with partly cloudy skies. High pressure builds over the region this weekend with mostly sunny skies with temperatures warming into the upper 70s to around 80 degrees.â€� For the latest weather news from Avondale, Louisiana, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK I’m just playing with a better version of me, so it’s fantastic. BY THE NUMBERS 17th – Current Strokes Gained: Putting ranking by Bud Cauley. Last season, he ranked 154th in that category. It’s the second-best improvement in that category on the PGA TOUR this season (Branden Grace has gone from 148th to 5th). 1 – Number of teams in the field in which both players are ranked inside the top 15 in the FedExCup standings. Also number of teams in which both players have won a PGA TOUR event this season. Patrick Reed-Patrick Cantlay fulfill both those descriptions. 3 – Number of teams in which both players have won majors – Justin Rose/Henrik Stenson, Louis Oosthuizen/Charl Schwartzel, Jim Furyk/David Duval SCATTERSHOTS Jordan Spieth tried to sneak in the University of Texas fight song as his team’s walk-up music. Partner Ryan Palmer – who attended Texas A&M – would have none of it. “He got busted,â€� Palmer said. Their first choice is “Drunk Last Nightâ€� by the Eli Young Band. As for the walk-up music for the defending champs? Jonas Blixt thought about tapping into his Swedish roots to choose an ABBA song. “We talked about ABBA, but we don’t know if too many people under the age of 35 knows who they are,â€� Blixt shrugged. So and Cameron Smith went with Levels by Avicii. Justin Thomas and Bud Cauley make a formidable golf duo. They might even be better in another setting – the billiards table. “Unfortunately, this isn’t a pool tournament,â€� Thomas said. “Might like our chances more.â€� Sam Burns (partner with William McGirt) grew up in Louisiana and attended the Zurich Classic a handful of times, once with veteran David Toms. But he had never played TPC Louisiana until this week. “Starting to figure it all out,â€� he said.

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