Winner’s Bag: Seamus Power, Butterfield Bermuda Championship

LAS VEGAS — Tied for the lead going into the weekend, Patrick Cantlay already was four shots behind before he hit his opening tee shot Saturday in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. That didn’t bother him in the least. He knows what to expect at the TPC Summerlin. RELATED: Full leaderboard | Wolff holes 3 eagles, cards 61 | DeChambeau stumbles on Saturday A tee shot so far left on the 10th hole that he had to hit a provisional? That made him a little anxious, but only until he found his original, hit wedge to 4 feet for birdie and began his climb back to where he started. When the third round ended, Cantlay and Martin Laird each had a 6-under 65 without making it look terribly special and were tied for the lead. Both got their first PGA TOUR victory at this tournament. Both have lost in a playoff. Both have played it enough times to realize birdie opportunities are there for everyone. U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau was among the exceptions. He had a pair of double bogeys and back-to-back bogeys, all before he reached the seventh hole. At that point he was 5 over in a five-hole stretch, which he said felt more like 12 over on a course like the TPC Sumerlin. He rallied enough for a 71, though he was seven shots behind and had 30 players in front of him. "Yeah, it was really weird," he said. "I don't know. It's golf, right?" Those 30 players ahead of him starts with Cantlay and Laird at 20-under 193. "I'm sure by the time I get to the golf course the lead will already be more than 20 under, which is what it's going to be around here," Cantlay said. "I think my strategy out here is to stay patient because I know there are so many birdie opportunities instead of pressing or feeling like I'm trailing, and realize that they're out there if I hit good shots." Laird had one exciting moment when he holed a 50-foot eagle putt on No. 9. Otherwise, it was attacking flags when he could and playing for the fat of the green when it was too risky. Some wind late in the day made it a little tougher, but the scoring average still was 67.5. "I have had good rounds every day, so I'm not going to change anything," Laird said. "It’s been working and I’m in a good spot, so just keep going." Matthew Wolff got it started early. After making the cut with one shot to spare, Wolff had three eagles in a five-hole stretch and had to settle for pars on his final two holes for a 61. Making three eagles at Summerlin is not unusual with a few short par 4s and all the par 5s easily reachable. Wolff, however, holed out on No. 11 from 116 yards. He drove the green on the 301-yard 15th hole to 15 feet and holed an 18-foot eagle putt on the par-5 13th. He never really considered 59 because he was only 2 under on the front. He played the back in 8-under 28. "If you only shoot 2 under on the front you feel like you never have a chance to shoot 59," he said. Wolff posted his 18-under 195 right as the last group was starting the third round, and it held until Laird was the first to get to 19 under with a birdie on the 13th. Wyndham Clark (65), Brian Harman (67) and Austin Cool (67) also were at 195. Na had a 64 and was three shots behind along with Will Zalatoris, who has a chance to earn special temporary membership with a strong finish Sunday. He already is leading the Korn Ferry Tour points list. Cantlay picked up birdies where he expects to except on the short par-4 seventh, where his drive was hung out to the right and found a bunker, leaving a 70-yard sand shot that he did well to get within 12 feet for a two-putt par. He expects to birdie the 10th, but not after hitting a provisional off the tee. "I was hoping that it would be somewhat OK over there and I could make a par," he said of his original tee shot. "Fortunately, it wasn't that bad and I was able to hit a great shot, so that was a bonus." DeChambeau, playing for the last time before the Masters on Nov. 12-15, did too much damage early on to recover. A wild tee shot on No. 2 led to double bogey, and while he missed the fairway badly on No. 6, what led to the double bogey was a three-putt from 12 feet. Four straight birdies on No. 8 steadied him — he nearly drove the 419-yard 10th — but not enough. He failed to convert on the short par-4 15th and dropped another shot coming in. "Didn't really hit bad shots, just didn't go where I wanted to," DeChambeau said. "Went into some really bad places and unfortunately didn't save par from them. Just stuff didn't go my way today, and it's OK. Not a big deal."

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The PGA TOUR travels stateside for this week’s tournament, The RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Georgia. The first two days of the tournament at Sea Island Resort will have a split field on both the Plantation course and the Seaside course. After Friday’s cut, the remainder of the tournament will be played on the Seaside course, which measures just over 7,000 yards, will play as a par 70 and be putt on Bermuda greens. The tree-lined Plantation course, which is more inland, will play as a par 72 and measure a little over 7,000 yards as well. RELATED: Course, field preview: The RSM Classic | Power Rankings | Expert Picks Last season, Seaside played as the 16th easiest course in scoring relative to par, and the Plantation course ranked as the 12th easiest. Both sit fairly close to the coast and can be subject to windy conditions, which happened during the second round of last year’s tournament. Average Friday scores on both courses totaled 71.02. Similar to last week, golfers shouldn’t have a hard time padding their fairway and greens hit in regulation stats, both are well over the TOUR average. Seaside registered an average of 71% fairways hit in regulation and 74% in greens in regulation. We should be focusing on the Seaside course this week with the majority of rounds being played there, and par 4 scoring should be at the top of our list when considering who to roster. If you want to dive deeper, par 4 scoring on holes between 400 to 450 yards will be even more important with eight holes on Seaside measuring within this distance range. We also should be looking at golfers who do well with their wedges, as 20% of all approach shots came from 125 to 150 yards. Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green will be the most important statistic to prioritize when building our lineups; golfers who’ve finished inside the top five gained more than twice the amount with their irons as they did in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. We’ll keep the trend going with focusing on par 5 scoring and driving accuracy again this week. TOP VALUES HARRIS ENGLISH ($10,000) English should continue his strong play in Sea Island after a top-five finish at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico. Much of it was done with his irons, averaging 72% of greens in regulation. He’s missed the cut here twice in the past four years, so in order to do well he’ll need to lean on his strong iron play and his ability to score on par 4s measuring between 400 to 450 yards. The good thing is he ranks first in par 4 efficiency from 400 to 450 yards over his past six tournaments. SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER ($9,200) Scheffler was a popular play early in the swing season and should get our attention again in Georgia. Scheffler dominated on the Korn Ferry Tour last season with 10 top-10s, a couple of second-place finishes and two wins (Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship and Evans Scholars Invitational). Although he couldn’t get anything going down in Mexico, he still shot three rounds in the 60s and has made all six of his cuts on the PGA TOUR this season. DENNY McCARTHY ($8,600) McCarthy quietly has been great in the swing season with two top-10s, a top-15 and six straight made cuts. He’s putting extremely well, gaining close to five strokes on the greens in his past 10 tournaments en route to his solid finishes. He shot two rounds in the 60s last week but scorched the back-nine in his final round, carding four birdies and an eagle. He’ll look to take his momentum to Sea Island and feel confident in his ability to score on par 4s, ranking fifth in par 4 scoring, seventh in par 4 efficiency from 400 to 450 yards and first in overall birdie or better percentage in his past six tournaments. XINJUN ZHANG ($7,300) Zhang has made five straight cuts and should be excited to get on a course where his strong iron play can excel. Zhang ranks 11th in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green and ninth in birdie or better percentage over his past 24 rounds. He made the cut back in 2018 and should keep his solid play going on this coastal course. KYLE STANLEY ($7,200) He’ll be a nice value play at his price, especially with him ranking first in par 4 wfficiency 400 to 450 yards over his past six tournaments. He also ranks second in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green over the same timeframe and hasn’t lost strokes in 11 of his past 12 tournaments with his irons. He struggles on Bermuda, but if he has an average week on the greens this week, he should be able to make the cut and do well on a course he’s had decent finishes at in the past. Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game. 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Bubba Watson ended a two-year drought without winning — his longest of the decade — by closing with a 2-under 69 on Sunday for a two-shot victory in the Genesis Open.

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