World top 5 under 30 for first time

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Rickie Fowler guesses he’s 10 yards longer this season after making a golf ball change at the outset of 2019. But is he also straighter? Fowler hit 11 of 14 fairways and shot a third-round 64 to open up a four-shot lead at the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on Saturday. “If he keeps driving it like this, he’s going to be tough to catch,â€� said Justin Thomas, his friend and housemate for the week, and also one of his third-round playing partners. Told that Thomas was wowed by his driving, Fowler jokingly pumped his fist. “Yes!â€� he said. He is four shots clear of second-place Matt Kuchar (65), who is enjoying a career revival at 40 and will be going for his third win in his last three starts. MUST READS: Round 3, Waste Management Phoenix Open Jarrod Lyle memorial at No. 16 brings perspective Denny McCarthy rules violation rescinded “It’s been nice to kind of have some things click on the swing this week,â€� Fowler said. “We have been working on some things the last few weeks pretty hard and trying to just get into some better positions to make things more efficient and ultimately more consistent.â€� Thomas shot 68 and was five back, in solo third. He and Fowler paired up to go unbeaten at the 2017 Presidents Cup, but there was little doubt which one came to play Saturday. “I really didn’t play very well today,â€� Thomas said. In all fairness, playing alongside Fowler may have made his round look and feel worse than it was. Fowler has now hit 30 of 42 fairways for the week, which is tied for fourth in Driving Accuracy. He is third in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee, and first in SG: Tee to Green. The question now is whether Fowler can keep it going, silencing the one consistent knock on one of the most liked players on TOUR: He doesn’t win enough. “Yeah, but the thing about Rick though is he doesn’t listen to that,â€� Thomas said. “And that’s why he has the probably the best demeanor on TOUR, that’s why he continued to play great golf, he continues to get himself in contention in the biggest tournaments.â€� Should he hang on to win Sunday, Fowler would notch his fifth TOUR victory and first since The Honda Classic in 2017. He has posted an over-par score in the final round following each of his previous six 54-hole leads/co-leads, converting for the win just once. “Everybody goes through stretches like that,â€� Thomas said. “And he would be the first to tell you he should have won more than he has. But it’s hard to win, there’s only one winner every week, and he’s played plenty well enough, and I’m sure it’s going to happen plenty of times.â€� Fowler came into this week 65th in the FedExCup, but with a history of stellar play at TPC Scottsdale. All he got out of it was two runner-up finishes, and heartache. He lost to Hideki Matsuyama on the fourth hole of a playoff in 2016, and by a shot to Hunter Mahan in 2010. He turned 30 last month, and just keeps knocking on the door. “I played with Rickie the first two days; he’s playing great golf,â€� said Kuchar, who won the Mayakoba Golf Classic and Sony Open in Hawaii, and has shot a perfect 19 of 19 rounds of par or better this season. “Certainly he’s going to be the player to beat, especially if he keeps up on the form he’s on, but, however, I feel like my form’s pretty good, as well.â€� Asked what a victory here would mean after the close calls, Fowler didn’t mince words. “It would be awesome,â€� he said. “It’s been a long time coming. I obviously want to win here. This is a special place. The Thunderbirds have been amazing to me, the fans are awesome and obviously very supportive of me. I always have friends and family in town here; it would be great. Like I said, another good solid 18 holes of golf and we’ll be in the right spot.â€�

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SYDNEY – Rory McIlroy was heading toward the end of 2013 feeling pretty ordinary after a winless year. Jordan Spieth was doing the same in 2014. And now Jason Day, who started 2017 as No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking but now sits 12th on the global list, is heading into the holiday season without a new trophy to admire. On each occasion, the criticism had started. The questions about what was wrong with them had well and truly begun. We hold our superstars to a high standard you see. Under pressure, McIlroy headed to Sydney in his off-season to play the Australian Open and ultimately won it by taking down a red-hot Adam Scott on Sunday. Scott had won the Masters at Augusta that season and was coming off wins at the Australian Masters and Australian PGA Championship in earlier weeks. But McIlroy came over the top of the national hero on Sunday and ultimately went on to dominate in 2014, winning The Open Championship, the PGA Championship, the World Golf Championships–Bridgestone Invitational and the BMW PGA Championship on the European Tour. He was PGA TOUR Player of the Year and laid some credit on his Australian win for the resurgence. “I did take a lot from that victory,â€� McIlroy said as he lined up for his title defense in Sydney in 2014. “It was my one and only victory of 2013 but it ended the year for me on a high and gave me momentum going into 2014.â€� But that week in Sydney wouldn’t go the same way for McIlroy. Instead, it was Spieth’s turn. The Texan shot a still much talked about 8-under 63 in brutal winds on Sunday to bury the demons he was facing for not being able to close out multiple chances to win on the PGA TOUR that year. The following season, just like McIlroy, he would win two majors and be Player of the Year. Spieth actually won five times and claimed the FedExCup in a sensational season. “The Australian Open may have been the most important tournament that I’ve ever played in because at the time, it had been maybe a year and a half since winning the John Deere in that playoff where I kind of squeaked in, luckily,â€� Spieth said. “Going there to an elite field with the world No. 1 player (McIlroy at the time) and obviously with the local favorite Adam (Scott) and with a venue like The Australian, to put myself in a position and just have a level of patience that I had not had when I was in contention prior to that was important.â€� So now, it is Day’s turn. After a year to forget that has seen his standing in the OWGR slide quickly, the now 30-year-old has a chance for his first win since THE PLAYERS Championship 2016. Through two rounds at The Australian Golf Club the 10-time PGA TOUR winner Day sits at 8-under and just one shot behind 21-year-old leader Lucas Herbert. Cameron Davis, a 22-year-old, is a shot back at 7-under with Anthony Quayle, at 23 at 6-under. Clearly Day is the favorite with two rounds to go with TOUR winners Cameron Smith and Matt Jones five off the lead and Spieth eight shots adrift. The chance to create a springboard to a comeback season has not been lost on him. “I haven’t won this year. But this would be a nice little end of the year cap, just to know that it wasn’t such a disappointing year,â€� Day said. “This is a huge kind of confidence builder for me this week and if I can somehow pull the win off, that would be great. “A win is a win, regardless of where you are, where you play. To have the Stonehaven Cup on the mantel would be great. It would be a good kick start going to next year’s season, back on the PGA TOUR. “I just know how Jordan’s done from having the confidence coming from this event and going forward and winning two majors the year after and having a lot of confidence going to the start of the year.â€� Speaking of Spieth, Day won’t rest despite the healthy gap between the pair. While those closest to Day have merely fractions of experience in winning big events, Spieth is still a factor. “If he gets something going on the weekend he can hole a lot of putts and make a lot of birdies and make a charge, and usually he does make a charge on the weekend,â€� Day said. “Seven strokes is obviously not enough but I’d like to keep pushing forward and hopefully I don’t see him in my rear view mirror at all.â€� If Day does surge ahead this weekend, be sure to remember it when picking your 2018 major winners.

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