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POTOMAC, Md. — Keegan Bradley did nothing special on the only easy scoring day this week at the Wells Fargo Championship, opening with an even-par 70 that left him around the cut line. RELATED: Leaderboard Since the conditions got tougher, Bradley has been the best player at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm. Bradley shot the lowest score for the second straight day Saturday, a 3-under 67 that gave him a three-day total of 8-under 202 and a two-shot lead over Max Homa in Open Championship like weather on a U.S. Open-style course. About 2 inches of rain has fallen since Friday morning, yet the low-lying course near the Potomac River has held up well enough to avoid any delays in play. Temperatures dropped into the low 40s Fahrenheit on Saturday. “It felt like a Patriots playoff game out there in December,” said Bradley, who grew up in New England. “It was fun, but I’m glad to be done.” Bradley was one of four players to shoot in the 60s. The scoring average was 73.7, the highest relative to par on the PGA TOUR since the final round of the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot. Although he has only one win in the past nine years, the 35-year-old Bradley has been solid recently, with top-10 finishes in three of his last five events, including fifth at THE PLAYERS Championship during another week of bad weather. The eye-popping number for a player whose putter has held him back: Bradley ranks second in the field this week in putting by the PGA TOUR’s “strokes gained” metric. His key makes on Saturday: 14 feet for birdie on the par-3 ninth hole, 21 feet for birdie on the tough par-4 11th, 9 feet for birdie on the 16th and, finally, 8 feet to save par after going bunker-to-bunker on the closing hole. “Today and yesterday were just really good ball-striking and really good putting. It’s rare that we match those up and I’ve matched that up these last two days,” Bradley said. “If I can just keep that going a little bit, I’ll like my chances.” A win by Bradley would move him into the top 60 in the world, making him exempt for the U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. “It’s on my mind,” he said. “I know what’s at stake.” Jason Day’s retooled swing couldn’t hold up for a third straight day. The leader after 18 and 36 holes, Day began struggling with his driver before it spilled over to the rest of the bag. He found the same pond on consecutive holes — a driver that never crossed dry land on the par-4 fourth, leading to triple bogey, and a 3-wood that hooked violently on the fifth. Day appeared to lose his grip on the club when he hit another hook into a water hazard with his second shot on the par-5 10th, even though he had half a dozen gloves hanging from the ribs of his umbrella. He shot 79 to fall seven shots off the lead. Homa shot a steady 71 while playing partners Day and Luke List struggled, finding fairways and hitting conservative approach shots for routine pars. He went from trailing Day by two to leading by two in a span of two holes that he played in even par. But consecutive bogeys on the back nine allowed Bradley to pass him. The day’s second-best score belonged to Rory McIlroy, who made the cut on the number and played on the opposite side of the course from the leaders. The highest-ranked player in the field at No. 7, McIlroy bogeyed his first two holes, made four birdies before the turn and closed with nine straight pars for a 68 that moved him into a tie for sixth at 2 under. “I think when you see conditions like this, you have to have a pretty upbeat attitude towards it and for me it was just grateful to be here,” McIlroy said. Anirban Lahiri shot 70 and was four shots back alongside James Hahn (72), a former champion of this event at its regular home, Quail Hollow, which is taking this year off because it’s hosting the Presidents Cup in September. Matt Fitzpatrick was 3 under after a 71. “It feels like I’ve just gone 12 rounds in a pro boxing match,” Lahiri said. “You’re fighting everything. You’re fighting your body, the elements, the water, the cold, the conditions. Yeah, it’s tough work and you just have to grit your teeth and kind of grind it out.”

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PALM CITY, Fla. — In the run-up to Cobra Golf’s unveiling of the new King F9 Speedback metalwood and irons, four-time TOUR winner Bryson DeChambeau sat down with the PGATOUR.COM’s Jonathan Wall to discuss the upcoming club line. DeChambeau touched on a number of subjects during the interview, including why he believes the transition into the King F9 Speedback driver will be easier this time around, the calls he makes to Cobra engineers on a regular basis, and what’s next for the shafts in his one-length irons. On his first impressions of Cobra’s King F9 Speedback driver: BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: It was an interesting design and look. I hadn’t really seen a driver designed that way before, and once we started going over all of the technical aspects of the driver — the aerodynamics, center of gravity, how they move weight lower in the head — it all came out as a fantastic design and build, but also a great sounding driver. Before I hit it, I thought it might have a weird sound, but it sounded beautiful — came off and sounded strong and firm. It’s a driver I feel like I can use right away after testing. Numbers have all been really good. It’s the kind of start that has me excited about using it this season. On why the transition into King F9 Speedback will be easier than F8+: DECHAMBEAU: This one feels like I could move into it pretty quickly. Might even move into it as soon as [the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open]. The spin is a lot lower, even than the F8. I’m a high-spin player who needs the least amount of spin possible on the driver and even the longer irons. For me, them moving the CG lower and having better aerodynamics made this driver easier to test. Feel like I’m able to really embrace the design and already have the confidence to pull off certain shot shapes. On why he spent so much time testing driver shafts late in the 2017-18 TOUR season: DECHAMBEAU: I just trying to get the spin, consistency of deflection, torque where I wanted it. Finally found a shaft that checked all the boxes and I’ve stuck with it. Sometimes you just have to do a bunch of testing to get there. For me, it just happened to occur later in the year. On why he regularly calls Cobra’s engineers to talk shop: DECHAMBEAU: I need an engineer to talk to. I’m usually calling them when I have something unique happening and I can’t resolve it in my brain on my own. I’ll ask them about the dynamics of the club to try and understand why some inertial properties are set up a certain way. We’re still working on that process. We’re still working on some questions that I think we can answer this year. In a couple years’ time, I think we’ll have the answers on everything when it comes to the driver. On TOUR players being intrigued by his one-length iron setup: DECHAMBEAU: Absolutely, I’ve had some guys come up and want to learn more about the setup. It’s definitely been interesting to share what I’m working on, but they’ve been doing things their way for so long and have been successful doing it that it would probably be tough to switch. Overall, one-length irons have progressed the game nicely. Will we see other young players come into the game using one-length? I like to think so. On the future of one-length irons and shaft testing: DECHAMBEAU: I’m not really sure as it pertains to the shafts in my irons. I went to a more progressive setup, but I still think I need to do more testing regarding how the shafts are deflecting, relative to what normal shafts are doing. We’re going to work on that and make it better. You actually just gave me an idea of something we can do, which is great. I’ve got a couple of good tests we can do and figure out the differences between the variable-length set and the one-length set on the wedges or the 4-iron. On finding the correct 3-wood when he went to Cobra: DECHAMBEAU: Cobra is underrated when it comes to their woods and don’t get enough respect for them. From a design perspective, they are on the cutting edge when it comes what they are doing. It’s not your standard fairway wood with the rails and CNC face. The Cobra Ltd. 3-wood I’ve had for a few years now has been definitely a game-changing club for me. I never had a 3-wood before that club that really fit my game. But right when I went to Cobra, I finally found one that worked. BUY EQUIPMENT HERE: PGA TOUR Superstore

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