Yesterday, the talk in the early afternoon centered on Phil Mickelson’s 8-under-par 63, which vaulted him back into contention.
In many ways, it came as a great surprise that for the first three rounds, the No. 1 golfer in the world - Luke Donald - has flown under the radar. In addition to his top ranking, Donald is the leading money winner on both the PGA and European tours, and if he were to finish the season that way, it would be unprecedented.
Donald started the weekend with a 66 on Friday, a round that featured six birdies, 11 pars, and one bogey. That put him one shot behind leader Troy Matteson. On Saturday, Donald stumbled a bit when he carded three bogeys, four birdies, and 11 pars and finished at 6 under, four shots behind Watson, Schwartzel, and Scott.
Yesterday, Donald rebounded with a 68 to move into a five-way tie for seventh, two shots behind Watson heading into today’s final 18.
The highlight of the day for Donald, a 33-year-old native of Hemel Hempstead, England, was the 542-yard, par-5 second hole. He bogeyed it in the opening round and made birdie in the second round. He improved on that dramatically yesterday.
His tee shot went 322 yards, and he followed with a 190-yarder that put him 8 feet 8 inches from the cup. He made the putt for eagle.
“It was a front, right pin,’’ said Donald. “I had a pretty good yardage, I hit a 6-iron, I had 185 [yards] to clear the water. There was just enough help down there that it was a good club and it came off perfectly. I got off to a great start.’’
Donald had seven pars on the front nine to go with his eagle, and birdied No. 7. His best par came on No. 4. His 291-yard drive got him into trouble in the grass framing the bunker. His 76-foot second shot went into the greenside bunker, but he hit a terrific shot from there, putting him less than two feet from the hole. He made the putt for 4.
“It wasn’t a very good drive,’’ said Donald. “I caught an awful lie there and that was really my only opportunity, to hit it into the bunker, and from there it was a pretty simple shot. My short game has been good all week. I’ve been pretty tidy, I just need to hit a few more greens.’’
On the back nine, Donald carded his only bogey - on No. 14 - and had seven pars before earning a birdie on 528-yard, par-5 18th. He said although he could have played better, he feels confident about where he stands.
“It stalled a little bit on the back nine, but it was a solid round,’’ he said. “I’ve still got a chance. Right now, no one is really going away too far. The lead’s at 11 [under] right now. If I have a good round tomorrow, I’ve got a good chance.’’
Nancy Marrapese-Burrell can be reached at marrapese@globe.com.
