American Chris Kirk goes into the final round of the US PGA Honda Classic with a two-shot edge on Saturday. Kirk followed up his excellent second-round performance with a 4-under-par 66 in the third round for a 54-hole total of 13-under 197. On Friday, the 37-year-old parbuster sizzled with a 62 at the par-70 PGA National course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and came up with a solid performance en route to a two-shot edge over Eric Cole. Kirk is in good position to secure the fifth title of his career, but his first since 2015, according to sports oddsmakers who keep tabs in golf’s stroke-by-stroke action.
Chris Kirk Takes 3rd-Round: Early Surge
Kirk, who started the day one stroke off the lead, got his bearings going in the fourth hole with a 16-foot holeout for birdie. He continued his surge in the eighth hole with a six-foot birdie and a 27-footer in the 11th. Those connections gave him a three-shot lead at 12-under. He rose to 13-under with another birdie at 12 but dropped two shots after bogeys on the 13th and 16th holes. Kirk capped his round with back-to-back birdies in the last two holes to finish at 13-under.
Cole was two shots off the pace after carding a 66. The tour rookie had five birdies in his round and is looking forward to winning his first US PGA Tour title. He is a shot ahead of overnight leader Justin Suh, who carded an even-par 70. Suh made an eagle at the par-four 12th where he holed his 153-yard second shot from the fairway. He registered bogeys at the fourth and 13th holes and missed a four-foot birdie putt to settle for a par at the 18th. Shane Lowry was a shot back at 9-under 201 after carding a 5-under-par 65 in the third round. The Irishman registered seven birdies, including a chip-in at the 11th. Ben Taylor was also at 9-under following a 1-under 69 in the third. The USD8.4-million event will conclude on Sunday with five golfers within four shots of each other.
Gooch, Uihlein Share LIV Golf Lead in Mexico
Former Oklahoma State teammates Talor Gooch and Peter Uihlein are in joint first place of the LIV Golf’s initial offering at Mayakoba on Saturday. Uihlein and Gooch both shot 5-under-par 66 for a 36-hole total of 9-under 133. Uihlein fired seven birdies in the second round but had two bogeys in two of the last three holes to put him in a tie with Gooch, who sank five birdies in a bogey-free round. The duo are ahead of Charles Howell III, who also shot a 66. Paul Casey and Brendan Grace are tied in fourth at 6-under with Casey shooting a 71 and Grace settling for his second-straight 68.
In the team competition, Crushers GC are two shots in front of their closest pursuers thanks to the excellent performances of Howell and Casey. They are at 14-under as the other member of the squad, Anirban Lahiri, is at even-par after two rounds. In second is the 4Aces GC at 12-under with Uihlein carrying most of the load at 9-under. Dustin Johnson is at 3-under and Pat Perez is at even-par. Fireballs GC (Abraham Ancer, Sergio Garcia, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra) occupy third at 10-under. They are three shots ahead of fourth-running RangeGoats GC of Gooch, Thomas Pieters and Harold Varner III. With one round remaining in the competition, online golf betting enthusiasts are anticipating dramatic conclusions in both competitions as the parbusters hunt for the title and the big money that comes after winning these events.
