Scottie Scheffler goes berserko mode at PGA Championship, Taylor Pendrith saves best for last
Article content
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The world’s best player sent a loud and clear message on Saturday at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow.
On a week that originally looked as though none of the world’s best players were up for the challenge, Scottie Scheffler left little doubt that the Wanamaker Trophy is his to lose after making an eagle and three birdies over his final five holes to shoot a 65 and head to Sunday at 11-under par with a three-stroke lead in Charlotte.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Scottie Scheffler goes berserko mode at PGA Championship, Taylor Pendrith saves best for last Back to video
If that wasn’t enough, he headed straight to the driving range to work on his game after the round.
“You work your whole life to have a chance to win major tournaments, any tournament for that matter, and tomorrow I have a good opportunity to go out there and try and win the golf tournament,” he said. “But it’s going to take another really good round. ”
After spending much of the day hovering around the top of the leaderboard with other top Saturday movers Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm, Scheffler powered-up at the par-4 14th, driving the green from 304 yards with his 3-wood and leaving himself a two-foot eagle putt. He followed that up with birdies at hole Nos. 15, 17 and 18, bending the famed Green Mile three-hole closing stretch to his will.
Scheffler will begin Sunday three shots clear of Swedish veteran Alex Noren (-8), and four shots ahead of Americans J.T. Poston and Davis Riley (-7).
Jon Rahm (-6) is the closest major champion to Scheffler. The Spaniard shot a Saturday 67 to get in the mix. Bryson DeChambeau (-5) had the third-round lead for a time, before playing the Green Mile in three-over par.
O CANADA
Taylor Pendrith saved his best for last on Saturday.
In the process, he saved his tournament by birdieing three of the four final holes on the brutally difficult closing stretch at Quail Hollow to card a one-over 72 and head to Sunday tied for 23rd at two-under par.
After making four consecutive bogeys beginning at hole No. 9, it looked like the big-hitting Canadian’s tournament was heading south on the weekend, something that has happened far too often recently, including last week at the Truist Championship.
Pendrith credits a conversation with caddie Mitch Theoret for getting things back on track.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
“After the last few weeks it could have gone the other way for sure. It’s such a hard game,” Pendrith said after his round. “We did have a conversation after (hole) 11 or 12 about just literally trying to not focus on the outcome and be present, and literally take it one shot at a time.”
Asked what it feels like to have a chance to win a major championship begin to slip away mid-round, Pendrith’s answer was perfectly blunt.
“It sucks,” he said.
“I played two nice rounds to put myself in a decent position and obviously I would have loved to get off to a better start. It’s a mental battle. At that point I probably realized I can’t win the golf tournament anymore, or have a chance to win it. But obviously I want to finish as high as I can, so I was just really trying to stay patient and let the bad stuff go and focus on what I’ve got in front of me.”
As for saving his best for last on Saturday, that’s literally what the Richmond Hill, Ont., native did on the final hole of Quail Hollow’s beastly Green Mile. After the wind took his tee shot on the 18th hole into the right-hand trees, he hit an approach shot he described as a “chip, cut 7-iron” from 161 yards that missed the right greenside bunker and scooted up the green to finish eight feet from the hole.
“Mitch said that’s the best shot he has ever seen me hit,” Pendrith said.
Playing alongside DeChambeau, there wasn’t a quiet moment for the Canadian.
“That’s probably the most people I’ve played in front of this year and it was a really cool experience,” he said. “Bryson played really nice golf today and they were all pulling for him hard. It’s fun to play in front of a lively crowd like that. It was hectic. I don’t think my wife saw any shots of mine today.”
Corey Conners, the only other Canadian to make the cut, shot three-over on Saturday and heads to Sunday at two over.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.