Sentry Tournament of Champions, Round 3: Leaderboard, tee times, TV times

Matt Fitzpatrick made 15 straight pars then rallied with two birdies on his last three holes to win the Andalucia Masters by three shots.

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OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Phil Mickelson, a staple of every Ryder Cup team since 1995, is still trying to force his way into Steve Stricker’s line up but confirmed he’d accept a vice-captains role should he fail to make the squad. Mickelson sits 19th on the U.S. team points list with the top six automatic picks confirmed following the BMW Championship this week. Stricker will then select six more members to round out the squad after the TOUR Championship. After an opening round 4-under 68 at Caves Valley Mickelson needs a huge final three rounds to make a surge into Stricker’s thinking and even qualify for the TOUR Championship. The veteran came in as the last man qualified at 70th in the FedExCup and needs to finish in the top 3 to advance. As his second-round tee time approached he sat eight shots off the lead. “The only way for me to have a realistic chance of being picked is to get into the TOUR Championship and then play well in the TOUR Championship,” Mickelson said. “I’m certainly a long shot I would say, but I’m starting to play well, and if I can put together three good rounds, you never know.” Of course Stricker can pick anyone he likes and may yet still decide Mickelson’s experience, and the fact he proved his winning prowess by becoming the oldest major champion ever at the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island in May, should be part of his squad. Mickelson was on winning teams in 1999, 2008 and 2016 but has lost nine times and holds a 18-22-7 record in 47 matches which is the record for most played and most losses. When asked directly about taking up a position amongst Stricker’s captaincy team that includes Davis Love III, Zach Johnson and Jim Furyk at this time, Mickelson admitted he’d consider it. “I love being a part of the Ryder Cup in any way, shape or form, so of course. But I’m not thinking about that right now,” he said.

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DUBLIN, Ohio – FedExCup champion Justin Rose has the best second round scoring average on the PGA TOUR this season, so his 9-under 63 at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide shouldn’t have been a surprise. But given he sat at 4-over for the week through four holes on Friday and well outside the projected cut at Muirfield Village, it was. Related: Leaderboard | Get to know K.H. Lee | Down a rib, Merritt makes his move Rose played the last five holes of the front nine in 6-under par with two eagles and two birdies, then added four more birdies on the back nine to post his career-best score at a venue where he won at in 2010 and has posted seven top-10s. The round of the tournament so far sent the 10-time PGA TOUR winner hurtling up the leaderboard into a tie for 11th at 6-under. Rose is just three shots off the lead held jointly by Martin Kaymer, K.H. Lee and Troy Merritt. The reason for his penchant for firing well on Fridays? “Crap first rounds,â€� Rose said. He ranks 64th on TOUR for opening rounds this season and shot a 3-over 75 on Thursday at Muirfield. “I’ve always been a bit of a fighter, back to the wall, having a lot of pride. I missed a lot of cuts early in my career, and I hate missing cuts. I’ve got a lot of personal pride on a Friday to try to get it done. “The two eagles on the front kind of kick started everything. I kept just pushing myself to keep trying to go as low as I could. Once you’re through the cut line, then you’ve got to build your way into the tournament. It was a great day.â€�

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