Emergency 9: Quicken Loans National, Round 3

Here are nine tidbits from the third round of the Quicken Loans National that gamers can use tomorrow, this weekend or down the road. TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm hosts for the second time and measures 7,107 yards (Par-70). Know Thy Enemy These were the top-10 selected golfers in the PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf game presented by SERVPRO. As the temperatures rose on Saturday the scoring continued to drop for the second day in a row. The course record set on Friday by Streelman was equaled by Abraham Ancer on Saturday. Ancer and Molinari both posted 197 (-13) and will be the last pairing off No. 1 tee Sunday afternoon. Neither has won on TOUR before and they are two shots clear of the field. Of the eight players within five shots only four have won on TOUR before but Woods isn’t out of it just yet as he’s six back. Round of the Week Part II Don’t wake him up! Abraham Ancer tied the course record today with eight birdies and a clean card. For the week he’s squared only two bogeys and has been playing lights-out. He’s second in SG: off the tee, third tee to green and first in scrambling. His putter isn’t holding him back either as he’s ninth in SG: putting. Since his career-best T8 at the Houston Open he’s MC in four of his last eight with his best payday cashing for T42. It’s a very big day for him tomorrow but living in Norman, Oklahoma, I know the heat won’t get to him! The Favorite The other half of the final pairing also has only made two bogeys all week but has a much deeper resume. Francesco Molinari hasn’t won on TOUR but he did beat an elite field last month as he won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth on the European Tour. Molinari won’t be intimidated by Ancer or his excellent numbers tomorrow as the former Ryder Cup player is leading the field in SG: tee to green and GIR and is seventh in fairways. Winning the first one is always the toughest but he’s the favorite tomorrow The Tiger The hump is still there and it’s spectacular as Tiger Woods cannot find the magic on the back nine on Saturday. Out in 32 with five birdies and within two of the lead, the greatest of this generation couldn’t keep the momentum going. He came home in 36 with only one birdie and sits six back entering the final round. It’s not a hard case to crack as he hit six fairways and got up-and-down once in five tries. He’ll need one of those special rounds we haven’t seen yet if he’s going to crack the code Sunday. The Defending Champ Many of us (raises hand) have Kyle Stanley in multiple formats this week and it’s nice to see him bounce back with 67-66 after his opening round 71. He didn’t have his best stuff tee-to-green as he only hit seven fairways and just 10 GIR but he scrambled all of the eggs and made omelets to lead the field in SG: around the green. Chasing the Final Pairing Ryan Armour was the only player of the 36-hole triumvirate to hold it together in Round 3 and will begin Sunday in the second-to-last group with Zac Blair. Armour’s blue-collar 68 included four squares and six circles but he birdied three of his final six to join Blair just two back. … Blair is making his 13th start of the season and his best previous payday is T16 but that was last October. His best finish in 2018 was T36 at the Valero Texas Open, another demanding layout. He’s doing everything well this week and a podium finish will go a very long way to having full membership next year. Let’s see how he handles the pressure as his only podium on TOUR was the 2016 Sony Open. Moving Day Gamers who have been on the scent of Ryan Blaum over the last few weeks will be acutely aware of his 64 in Round 3. He’s up 35 spots to T10 as he looks to finish T18 or better for the fourth time in five tries. … Bronson Burgoon hasn’t had a top 10 in 16 previous events this season but his bogey-free 65 on moving day shot him up 26 spots to T10. … Former event champ Troy Merritt has buried his demons from his 66-82 MC in 2017 with a pair of 68’s to make the cut. His 66 in Round 3 moved him up 13 spots to T7. … Anirban Lahiri fired 65 last Saturday at TPC River Highlands. He signed for 65 this Saturday at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farms and moved up 41 spots to T25, the biggest mover of the day. He’ll need another low one Sunday to match his T9 from last week. Moving Day: Wrong Way Gamers were inquiring why I didn’t address Billy Horschel yesterday. The simple is answer is I don’t have time and room for everyone. He dropped from T4 to T34 if you’re wondering how Round 3 went. … Kevin Streelman backed up his course record 62 with 67 in Round 3 and is sixth. J.J. Spaun backed up his course record 63 from Round 1 with 73-73 and is now T49. … Joaquin Niemann is uber-talented but his 74 dropped him 11 spots to T49. He’s still learning but doesn’t have far to go. That happens with youngsters! Study Hall The scoring average dipped to the lowest point of the week as Saturday’s 69.860 (-0.140) bested that of Round 1 69.992 (-0.008) and Round 2 69.908 (-0.092). … There’s no wind and the refrain from the players is the course is not as firm and baked out as last year. The 54-hole leader last year was David Lingmerth on 203 (-7). That was also Stanley’s winning score. Not this year! … First round co-leader Andrew Landry dusted himself off after a disappointing 72 in Round 2 with 65 in Round 3 and sits fifth. … C.T. Pan (67-67) broke his driver on No. 14 in Round 1 but the new piece in his bag didn’t hold him back in Round 2. His bogey-free 68 on Saturday was just one of three for the round joining Ancer and Burgoon. He’s currently T7.

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