PGA contender withdraws mid-tourney due to virus

FORT WORTH, Texas — Webb Simpson shot a 3-under 67 on Saturday to break out of a crowd and take the third-round lead at the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational. At 9-under 201, Simpson was two strokes ahead of Danny Lee and Paul Casey after both of them made long birdie putts at the 18th hole. Stewart Cink and Kevin Kisner were three strokes off the lead. Part of a four-way tie for the 36-hole lead, Simpson went ahead alone to stay after consecutive birdies to start his back nine. He made a 6-foot birdie putt at the 387-yard 10th and a 12-footer at the 630-yard 11th before finishing with seven consecutive pars. It is only the second time in 12 years at DEAN & DELUCA for the 54-hole leader to have more than a one-stroke advantage. Defending champion Jordan Spieth shot a 68 with a caddie switch after making the turn, and was at 4 under. Spieth’s regular caddie, Michael Greller, left the course after 11 holes because of heat exhaustion on a steamy day with temperatures in the 90s and the heat index higher than that. Damon Goddard, the personal trainer for the player and the caddie, carried the bag the rest of the round — a stretch when Spieth had a bogey and two birdies. Lee and Kisner also were tied for the second-round lead, along with Scott Piercy, whose shot 72 to fall five strokes back. After three birdies and three bogeys his first eight holes Saturday, Lee had a steady stream of pars until finishing with a 16-foot birdie for a round of 69. Casey, who shot 68, was alone in second for only a couple of minutes. He made a nearly 25-foot birdie putt that had just enough speed to fall into the cup at No. 18, while Lee was playing in the group behind him. Casey was 1 over for the day without a birdie until starting his back nine with three birdies in a four-hole stretch that included a bogey. Piercy was still within a stroke of the lead at 8 under after a par-saving 13-foot putt at the 12th hole after driving into the rough and hitting his approach in a greenside bunker there. Piercy then promptly hit his tee shot at the par-3 13th into the pond on way to a double-bogey. He followed with another bogey at 15 when he drove into the rough and then hit into a greenside bunker, and did the same at No. 18. Simpson, the 2012 U.S. Open winner playing in the final group, started the round with birdies at the first two holes. He gave one of those back with a bogey at the par-3, 192-yard No. 8 after missing the green with his tee shot. Since losing a playoff to Hideki Matsuyama at Phoenix, Simpson had missed four of nine cuts before this week. The four-time PGA TOUR winner’s best finish in that stretch was a tie for 11th at the RBC Heritage.

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TPC Sawgrass demands every part of your game be on point. There is no bias for bombers, or lefties, or precision putters. To win THE PLAYERS, you need everything to show up in some form or fashion. As such, momentum coming into the event is a critical factor. With the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard wrapped up, it’s time take a look at some of those players heading to Pete Dye’s masterpiece in the right direction. Related: Featured Groups | Nine things to know about TPC Sawgrass | Pete Dye: The genius who loathed plans 1. Rory McIlroy – The defending PLAYERS champion may well have played his final three rounds at Bay Hill over par, but he was not alone. What he did do was finish in fifth place, making it six for six for the current FedExCup champion and World No. 1 in top-five finishes on the PGA TOUR this season. McIlroy was third at the ZOZO Championship in Japan, won the World Golf Championships – HSBC Champions in China, finished third at the Farmers Insurance Open, and then recorded fifth-place finishes in his last three starts at The Genesis Invitational, World Golf Championships – Mexico Championship and Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. A year ago, THE PLAYERS was also his seventh start of the season, and he showed up at TPC Sawgrass on the back of five consecutive top-six results. You might say he’s trending again. “There’s a lot of similarities between the start of this year and the start of last year. A lot of chances not converting, but knowing that the game’s pretty much there,â€� McIlroy says. “My win percentage on TOUR is like 10 percent and I think that’s pretty high for anyone not being Tiger Woods. So it’s one of those things. I’ve had chances and I wish I had converted one of them over the last few weeks, but I’m still in good form. I’m playing some good golf. And hopefully if I just keep putting myself in those positions, it’s only a matter of time.â€� 2. The Englishmen – No Englishmen has won THE PLAYERS Championship, but the country’s top players might be in the best collective shape to break that drought yet. Tyrrell Hatton showed tremendous mettle to hold it together in tough conditions at Bay Hill to claim his first PGA TOUR victory to go with his four European Tour wins. A week earlier, Tommy Fleetwood was in contention down the stretch until a water ball on the 72nd hole at The Honda Classic. Matt Fitzpatrick was the only player on the weekend at Bay Hill to post a round in the 60s, with his 69 on Sunday. Then there are others with strong pedigree like Justin Rose, Paul Casey, Danny Willett and Matt Wallace who will also be ready to give it their all. “Time will tell. It’s hard to kind of think about next week at the moment with the sort of potential celebrations we have got later today. I don’t think I’ll be in any fit state at least until Wednesday,â€� Hatton smiled. “But next week’s going to be interesting and hopefully an Englishman can finally win that trophy.â€� 3. Bryson DeChambeau – The bulked up Bryson had a few pundits snickering when he finished in 52nd place at the Waste Management Phoenix Open early last month. Some said his body transformation would be the death of his game. But since then, DeChambeau has finished fifth at The Genesis Invitational, runner-up at the World Golf Championships – Mexico Championship and fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, where he led the field in Driving Distance (301.8 yards) and Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee (+7.200). “I drove it pretty well this week, besides a couple holes out here today. And for me that’s a true testament of how hard I’ve been working on my driving to get it right, and then iron play is getting slowly better, and putting, I’m still not there with,â€� DeChambeau says. “I had two three-putts today and that really was the deciding factor for the total round of shooting a deep one out there today. But at the same point in time, I’m going to take a lot of good positives away from this and go into THE PLAYERS with some great momentum.â€� 4. Collin Morikawa – The new leader on the PGA TOUR for consecutive cuts made now faces a huge test to keep it going. The 23-year-old has made 21 straight cuts, including all 20 of his professional starts on the PGA TOUR, to top the list. He already has a win to his name at last season’s Barracuda Championship, but now faces his first trip to Sawgrass. His T9 at Bay Hill, a third top-10 this season, leaves him feeling like a first-timer who can make a splash. “I want to get to the next level of contending every week, not just making cuts and finishing whatever,â€� Morikawa said. “For me, it’s what can I pinpoint, where can I save a shot or two or three through the tournament, because it really matters out here. It makes a big difference.â€� 5. Sungjae Im – Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year in 2018. PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year in 2019. International team Presidents Cup star last December. Winner of The Honda Classic and a third-place finisher at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Despite a missed cut at TPC Sawgrass on debut last season, this is one young star you should not sleep on.

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