Korda survives triple-bogey to win LPGA in playoff

Catching Up Is Hard to Do The second round of the John Deere Classic resumed at 6:38 a.m. CT on Saturday. Eighty-two golfers survived the 36-hole cut, thus triggering the 54-hole cut of low 70 and ties. With 2.3 inches of rain overnight, the local rule for preferred lies on closely mown areas was in play for the third round and threesomes were sent off split tees. Inclement weather then suspended the third round at 10:38 a.m. After another 0.8 inches of rain fell, play resumed at 1:11 p.m. Continuous play lasted until 5:53 p.m. when inclement weather halted action for the third time in just over 24 hours. Forty-five golfers were stranded until 7:12 p.m., but all finished the third round before dark. Following the Leader After building a three-shot lead at the midpoint, Michael Kim expanded his cushion to five strokes with a third-round 64. He concluded it with four consecutive birdies, all after the second weather delay, to post 22-under 191. With a 66 or lower in the final round, he’ll beat Steve Stricker’s tournament record of 258 in 2010. It’s no wonder why Kim is poised to enter the record books at a tournament that began in 1972. He’s putting up historical numbers. Through 54 holes, he co-leads the field in fairways hit (35 of 42) and leads in both greens in regulation (47) and proximity to the hole (24 feet, six inches). If the aerial assault wasn’t enough punishment on the par 71, he also ranks second in both strokes gained: putting and one-putt percentage. It’s video-game golf on beginner mode. Something will give on Sunday, however. Of 203 qualified for official statistics, Kim ranks 195th in final-round scoring average of 73.14. Hurl into the equation that he’s 161st in the FedExCup standings with only five more weeks before the Playoffs and that he’s not yet exempt for next season, and that five-stroke margin is more valuable than it appears. What a -Goon Maybe that whole thing about the third time being the charm is the real deal. After a T6 at the Quicken Loans National and T30 at Greenbrier (where he entered the final round inside the top 10), Bronson Burgoon stands alone in second place at TPC Deere Run tonight. He walked off his third round with three straight birdies and leads the field in par-5 scoring at bogey-free 9-under with three eagles and three birdies. Moving Day Tyler Duncan is capturing our attention once again. After making the cut by two strokes (for his 10th consecutive payday), the PGA TOUR rookie carded an 8-under 63, best in the field in the third round and a personal-best aggregate of 82 scores. With it, he vaulted 34 spots on the leaderboard and into a share of 12th place entering Sunday’s finale. With 5-under 66s, Patton Kizzire and C.T. Pan rose 31 spots. Both are tied for 34th place. It was a long time coming for the two-time TOUR winner this season as Kizzire hadn’t signed for lower than a 68 since the fourth round of the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship (66). This proves why TPC Deere Run is a track where a touring professional can find his form. Moving Day: Wrong Way Ryan Blaum and non-member Dylan Meyer started the third round inside the top 25, but both shot 1-over 72 to plummet 31 places on the leaderboard before landed at T55. Meyer presented promise entering the tournament with top-20 finishes at the U.S. Open and Quicken Loans National. With his equivalent of 92 FedExCup points, he’d rank 184th among members, so he’s all but a lock to qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals if he doesn’t earn a 2018-19 PGA TOUR card sooner. First-round leader Steve Wheatcroft settled for an even-par 71 in the third round to post 12-under 201. It’s a smack in the face after starting it tied for second and only three swings adrift of Kim. The 54-hole cut snipped 11 who failed to finish inside the low 70 and ties the second time through this week. Notables among this grouping include Chesson Hadley, Bill Haas, Ryan Palmer and Andrew Putnam. First Impression Of the 11 golfers inside the top 10 on the leaderboard, only Matt Jones (3rd), Andres Romero (T5), Robert Garrigus (T7) and Johnson Wagner (T7) are PGA TOUR winners. Kim still has complete 18 holes to break through for his first victory, but with his comfortable overnight lead and the bevy of non-winners in pursuit, the odds are good that the tournament will crown its fourth first time winner since Jordan Spieth emerged from a three-man playoff in 2013. Brian Harman (2014) and Bryson DeChambeau (2017) also converted. Know Thy Enemy These were the top-10 most owned in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO. Congratulations, but … Because the Official World Golf Ranking’s strength-of-field [SOF] rating of the John Deere Classic is only 99, the winner will not receive an exemption into the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. Winners of tournaments with a SOF rating of 115 and greater are awarded a spot in the field at Firestone, including this week’s Scottish Open (312), so the champion in the Quad Cities will have to punch his ticket another way. Seven golfers already exempt into the WGC competed at the JDC. Through 54 holes, tournament debutant Francesco Molinari is positioned at T12, fellow first-timer Austin Cook is T30, Patton Kizzire sits T34 and Andrew Landry is T39. Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau withdrew during his opening round, while both Si Woo Kim and Aaron Wise missed the 36-hole cut. Study Hall The third-round scoring average of 68.99 is the lowest at TPC Deere Run since last year’s 68.19, also in the third round. … There were eight bogey-free scores in the third round to bring the tournament total to 26. … Harold Varner III, who has one of those bogey-free scores (second-round 65), continued his red-hot form with a 66 in the third round. He’s alone in fourth place at 15-under 198 after a career-best-tying T5 last week. … Local favorite Zach Johnson jumped 26 spots to T39 with a 67. … Three-time JDC champ and all-time tournament earnings leader Steve Stricker dropped 25 spots to T49 with a 71. The 51-year-old was the only qualifier at the Constellation SENIOR PLAYERS Championship inside the top 50 of the Charles Schwab Cup standings who didn’t commit to the fourth major of the season on the PGA TOUR Champions.

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The global swing of the PGA TOUR continues at the inaugural CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES this week in Jeju Island South Korea. The new event promises to be the “bridge to realization� for one player who dreams large and brings their A game. The 72-hole stroke-play tournament features a 78-player field, with no cut, made up of players from three sanctioning bodies: the PGA TOUR, the Asian Tour and the KPGA. FedExCup champion and PGA TOUR Player of the Year Justin Thomas headlines a strong field that also includes TOUR Championship winner and Rookie of the Year Xander Schauffele, Arnold Palmer Invitational and BMW Championship winner Marc Leishman and CIMB Classic winner Pat Perez. Leishman cut his teeth playing the Korean Tour in 2006. “The course is very good. It’s different to a lot of other Korean courses I’ve played. It’s a lot more generous off the tee, a lot wider,� the Australian says. “Greens are very good, it’s important to get it on the right section of the green. It’s a beautiful golf course, I think it’s going to hold up really well for the tournament.� It will also be the first start of the season for the likes of Jason Day, Daniel Berger and Adam Scott. PLAYERS champion Si Woo Kim will look to lead a strong local contingent of 17 Koreans. Here are the featured groups. Korea is 11 hours ahead. All tee times are Eastern Time. Justin Thomas, Pat Perez, Sangmoon Bae: Thomas was unable to make it three in a row last week at the CIMB Classic but the FedExCup champion promises to be dangerous this week after a bit of competitive rust was blown off in Malaysia. He’s joined by the man who did win last week in Perez and by a local favorite in former International Team Presidents Cupper Sangmoon Bae. Bae is returning to TOUR life having fulfilled his two-year military obligations in Korea, hungry for quick success. Tee times: Wednesday 7:30 p.m. (ET) off 10 tee; Thursday 8:30 p.m. off 1st tee Si Woo Kim, Jason Day, Adam Scott: The PLAYERS champion draws a pair of Aussies making their first start of the new season. Kim leads the young breed of Korean players and will be heavily supported and heavily motivated to succeed. Day and Scott are in rebound mode after last season was the first time since 2012 that at least one of them hadn’t had a victory. They know this could kick start something big. Tee times: Wednesday 7:40 p.m. (ET) off 10 tee; Thursday 8:40 p.m. off 1st tee Marc Leishman, Xander Schauffele, Daniel Berger: Two former and one current Rookie of the Year get together here. Leishman won the award in 2009 but is coming off a breakthrough season where he won twice. He once played a year on the Korean Tour. Berger claimed the honor in 2015 and has won in each of the last two seasons. Schauffele’s name is still warm on the inscription of the 2017 trophy and he comes in off a T3 finish last week.  Tee times: Wednesday 8:30 p.m. off 1st tee; Thursday 7:20 p.m. off 10th tee K.J. Choi, Jhonattan Vegas, Patrick Reed: The godfather of Korean men’s golf will draw the masses. Choi might not have won since his PLAYERS triumph in 2011 and hasn’t had a top-10 since February of 2016 but the local faithful will be willing him forward. Recent Presidents Cup rookie Vegas will be looking to build on his T39 in Malaysia while Reed is looking to open his season account in style. Tee times: Wednesday 8:40 p.m. off 1st tee; Thursday 7:30 p.m. off 10th tee

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