Tony Finau ties career low with 62 to lead Cadence Bank Houston Open

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Eighteen holes remain in the topsy-turvy 3M Open outside Minneapolis, and there is so much on the line over such a tiny window of time. A trophy, a huge seven-figure winner’s check, coveted points for FedExCup Playoffs positioning … it all is in the offing as the tournament screeches around the corner toward a final day. RELATED: Leaderboard | Chase for top 125 in the FedExCup heats up at 3M Open | TPC Twin Cities’ par-5 finishing hole anything but a snoozer Cameron Tringale posted a mistake-free, 5-under 66 on Saturday – it included a 4-foot eagle putt at the par-5 12th, set up by a beautiful 3-wood from 262 yards – to wrestle away the 54-hole lead. He has plenty of company nearby as he looks to land his first PGA TOUR victory on Sunday. There are 10 players within two or fewer shots of his lead, and four more lurking only three shots behind. The best part, at least for those without clubs in their hands? There is a great deal of drama awaiting at the finish line. Really, if the first three days have taught us a lesson, it is that anything – anything! – can happen on that dastardly, water-guarded par-5 18th hole at TPC Twin Cities. It plays just a smidge under 600 yards, is reachable in two for most with two well-struck shots, and has a penchant of proving memorable for nearly all. There aren’t many par-5 holes on the PGA TOUR that so openly sneer back at the game’s top players. On Saturday, No. 18 played a half-stroke over par (5.486) and ranked as the toughest hole on the entire course. It even featured a Jean-van-de-Veldian moment as the last group finished, with Bo Hoag, the second-year TOUR member who had performed so well for much of the day, rolling up his pants and wading into the water behind the 18th green to attempt to extricate his fourth shot. Hoag, who played his last four holes in 4 over to shoot 72 (the finish included a double-bogey at the par-3 17th), would chop his ball out of water on his way to a scrambling, closing bogey-6. It still was half a dozen shots better than Sung Kang, who rinsed four balls in the water and made 12, and bettered the efforts of Rickie Fowler and J.T. Poston, who made 8s. “Is this a par 6?” analyst Mark Immelman asked on the CBS broadcast late Saturday afternoon. Hey, it was a legit question. There aren’t many par-5 holes on the PGA TOUR that play over par. The overall recipe for the 3M finish – lots of interesting names in contention, from major winners to those seeking their first PGA TOUR victory, alongside the potential for lots of two-way traffic on Sunday with water lurking on 15 holes – sets up Sunday as one of the most stirring, edge-of-your-seat final rounds we may witness on the PGA TOUR this season. Gary Woodland (67) and Maverick McNealy (68) each missed birdie chances from 8 feet at the 18th, and they’ll each start the final round a shot out of the lead. Woodland, who will be alongside Tringale in the final pairing, is a seasoned player who won the 2019 U.S. Open; McNealy, 25, is looking for his first TOUR triumph. Tringale, 33, stands at 12-under 201. The group of players two shots back at 10-under 203 includes major champions (Charl Schwartzel, Jimmy Walker), long bombers (Jhonnattan Vegas, Cameron Champ), and veteran players thirsty to win again (Chez Reavie, Ryan Armour, Pat Perez). Also in the group chasing is Canadian Roger Sloan (70), who held the lead on his own for part of Saturday and is trying to win for the first time, not to mention improve his FedExCup standing. He currently sits at No. 147 in season points. Keith Mitchell showed everyone early on that there were birdies to be made at TPC Twin Cities. Heading off on No. 10, he birdied his first seven holes, lipping out for his eighth straight at the 17th. (Mitchell shot 66.) By day’s end, winds were picking up (in the 15 mph range) and the finish got tricky. Tringale did well to avoid disaster, or at the very least, steer clear of bogeys down the stretch. Many of his peers could not. “I’m happy with kind of everything, honestly.” Tringale said. The 3M marks his 307th PGA TOUR start; since 2009, no player has played in that many events without winning. “What I want to do better tomorrow is hit my spots on the greens a little better, my approaches. But, I mean, I’m putting … I don’t know where I’m at statistically, but I’ve liked just about every putt I’ve hit. Hopefully, I’ll continue to do that tomorrow. “Just try not to overthink it. That’s the key, isn’t it?” Tringale is hoping to pull some momentum out of his closing round at TPC Twin Cities a year ago, when he shot 66 and climbed into a tie for third at 3M. “I birdied 18 last year, I remember that,” said Tringale, who needed only 25 putts on Saturday. “I’m just going to have fun. I remember last year’s round really well, and I’m excited. I feel like I’m doing everything well in my game for the most part, so just keep my head on straight and try and have some fun and not overthink it.” So many players stuck their mugs into contention on Saturday. Inclement weather was expected to arrive in the Minneapolis area Saturday afternoon, which led to tournament officials moving up third-round tee times. Players teed off both nines in threesomes. But it turned out to be a Chamber of Commerce-type day, with lots of sunshine and calm – at least before players stepped to that tee at the formidable 18th hole. Sung Kang reached the 18th hole 1 under par and shot 77, making a 12. Fowler, seeking his first TOUR victory since 2019, made a nice early run up the leaderboard, playing his first 12 holes in 6 under before slipping with back-to-back bogeys on 13 and 14. He still was very much in the tournament picture. Then he came up short on his third shot at 18, his ball splashing down into water, hit his next shot long, and made 8. Hoag, the man on the FedExCup bubble at No. 125, took his bogey at the finish in stride on Saturday. He’ll hope to do better in the final round, and knows he needs a good showing to help out his FedExCup standing with the Playoffs only three weeks away. He is doing his best. “I’ve played under pressure my whole life,” Hoag said, smiling, after walking off 18. “It’s just what I do.” At the 3M, he is not alone.

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The man in the arena at the Puerto Rico Open qualifier was medalist Christian Salzer, who rebounded from a three-putt bogey at the opening hole to card 7-under 64, earning his first career PGA TOUR start. The 23-year-old who turned professional last June had made just one start in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event, missing the cut at the Korn Ferry Tour’s Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard in early February. The North Carolina State alum has mostly tested his game on mini-tours. In his professional debut, he finished T3 at the 2021 Mimosa Open on the GProTour after carding rounds of 64-65-68. He felt like his game had been solid all year, he said, but hadn’t really cashed in until Monday. “Whole lot different than college golf,” Salzer told PGA TOUR Digital after the round. “Pars are good in college, but they don’t cut it in professional golf no matter what level you are. Mini-tours teach you to keep your foot on the gas and keep making birdies.” Salzer, who chalked up eight birdies on Monday, always believed he had the talent to compete on the PGA TOUR. But it has taken time and veteran advice from former North Carolina State golfer and 2010 PLAYERS Championship winner Tim Clark to propel Salzer’s game. “Tim told me something once when we were at his house for a college tournament,” Salzer said. “He said that the club and the golf ball don’t know what the shot is for, or how much it means, or what could go wrong. It resonated with me and put things in perspective. Golf doesn’t change or get harder. No matter the situation, only the player can put the pressure on and make it harder.” Salzer will look to channel that newfound perspective this week as he makes his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open. Patrick Flavin qualified for his second PGA TOUR event of the season after posting a 6-under 65. Flavin’s T17 finish at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship was tied for best for a Monday qualifier this year until Martin Contini’s finish at The Honda Classic last week. Alejandro Tosti tied Flavin at 6-under and will make his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open. Tosti becomes the third Argentinian in the last two weeks to qualify for a PGA TOUR event. The 4-for-1 playoff to decide the last qualifier for the Puerto Rico Open ended on the fourth extra hole when veteran Brett Stegmaier made birdie. His most recent PGA TOUR start came at the 2018 Wyndham Championship, finishing T11. Drew Nesbitt, Brian Carlson and Brian Richey fell just shy of Puerto Rico Open entry via the 4-for-1 playoff. It marked the second consecutive week in which Richey lost in a Monday qualifier playoff, after he competed in last week’s 16-for-1 playoff at The Honda Classic qualifier. Here’s a capsule look at the four Puerto Rico Open qualifiers … Christian Salzer (7-under 64) Age: 23 College: North Carolina State Turned pro: 2021 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Will make PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open … Made Korn Ferry Tour debut at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard, resulting in missed cut … Played four years of college golf at North Carolina State … Finished senior year with 71.57 scoring average, which was 12th lowest in program history … Prior to North Carolina State, Salzar ranked as the No. 2 junior in the state of South Carolina … Won the 2015 South Carolina Junior Championship … Represented the United States at the 2015 Can – Am Championship. Alejandro Tosti (6-under 65) Age: 25 College: University of Florida Turned pro: 2018 PGA TOUR starts: 0 Notes: Will make his PGA TOUR debut at the Puerto Rico Open … Has two top-25 finishes in three starts on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica this season … Currently No. 18 on Totalplay Cup… Finished inside the top-10 three times in eight events on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica in 2019 … Won the 2019 Termas de Rio Hando Invitational on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica … Turned pro in 2018 … Had already recorded two finishes inside the top-20 on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica as an amateur … Played collegiately at the University of Florida … Was 2017 Golfweek First Team All-America and First Team All-SEC … Made the 2015 SEC All-Freshman Team … Won individual portion of the 2017 SEC Championship at Sea Island, Georgia … Won first and last event while playing for the University of Florida … Represented Argentina at the 2014 World Amateur Team Championship in Japan … Finished T2 with Lucas Herbert in the 2014 Eisenhower Trophy for individual play, three strokes shy of winner Jon Rahm. Patrick Flavin (6-under 65) Age: 26 College: Miami (Ohio) Turned pro: 2018 PGA TOUR starts: 2 Cuts made: 1 Notes: Will make second start of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season at the Puerto Rico Open … Qualified for the 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship and finished T17 … Has made two cuts in three events on the 2021-22 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica … Best finish was 18th at the 115 VISA Argentine Open presented by Macro … Played five events on the 2020-21 PGA TOUR Latinoamerica, recording one finish inside the top-10 at the 61 Abierto Mexicano de Golf … Played 13 events on the 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour, finishing T5 at the Evans Scholars Invitational presented by First Midwest Bank and T10 at the Wichita Open Benefitting KU Wichita Pediatrics … Finished T5 in the Forme Open at TPC River’s Bend and T7 at the Forme Tour Championship on the 2021 Forme Tour … Played 16 events on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica in 2019, winning the Bupa Match Play and finishing inside the top five in two other events (Shell Championship; 66 JHSF Aberto De Brasil) … Two-time Miami (Ohio) Athlete of the Year … Stands No. 658 on the Official World Golf Ranking. Brett Stegmaier (5-under 66; birdie on fourth hole of 4-for-1 playoff) Age: 38 College: University of Florida Turned pro: 2006 PGA TOUR starts: 80 Cuts made: 40 Notes: Puerto Rico Open will be Stegmaier’s first PGA TOUR event since the 2017-18 PGA TOUR season … Played 34 events on the 2020-21 Korn Ferry Tour … T11 at Live and Work in Maine Open was best result … Opened 2019 Korn Ferry Tour season with back-to-back finishes inside the top-10 in the Bahamas … Best Korn Ferry Tour finish was second at the 2014 Chitimacha Louisiana Open presented by MISTRAS … Played on the PGA TOUR from 2015-16 to 2017-18 … Best finish was T2 at the 2015 Shriners Children’s Open … Stands No. 915 on the Official World Golf Ranking. Notables to fall short of qualifying: Brian Richey, Chase Koepka, Tom Lovelady, M.J. Maguire, Erik Compton, Mickey DeMorat, Jamie Lovemark, Max Sear, Daniel Wetterich, Ben Silverman, Kyle Reifers, Marcelo Rozo, Andrew Svoboda, Andrew Loupe, Nicholas Thompson, Stephen Stallings Jr., Mark Baldwin This week’s Puerto Rico Open qualifiers will aim to build on the momentum cultivated at The Honda Classic last week. Three of The Honda Classic’s four open qualifiers survived the cut. Argentinian Martin Contini was T7 heading into the final round at PGA National (Champion) before finishing T16. It was the best finish by a Monday qualifier so far in 2022. Rick Lamb, who qualified last Tuesday morning after making eagle on the first hole of a 16-for-1 playoff, carried his quality play to PGA National and finished T30. It was his best finish on the PGA TOUR since the 2017 Wyndham Championship. Sam Stevens, medalist at The Honda Classic qualifier, was T19 heading into the final round before carding 4-over 74 and finishing T55. 2021-22 Monday qualifier statistics Top-25s: Martin Contini (T16, The Honda Classic); Grant Hirschman (T17, Sanderson Farms Championship); Patrick Flavin (T17, Butterfield Bermuda Championship) Best finish: Martin Contini (T16, The Honda Classic) Most times qualified: Patrick Flavin (2); Kyle Wilshire (2); Ben Silverman (2) Last event’s qualifier results (The Honda Classic): Martin Contini (T16); Rick Lamb (T30); Sam Stevens (T55); Fabián Gómez (MC) Next PGA TOUR qualifier: Valspar Championship; Southern Hills Plantation Club, March 14

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