(Tulsa) Mito Pereira lost control like several other golfers in the wind and cold of the Southern Hills course. He recovered just in time to take the lead in the PGA Championship.
Posted at 10:11 p.m.
Pereira found his game and had three birdies on the last six holes, the last from just over 25 feet, to put in a 69, one under par, which allowed the 27-year-old Chilean to take three shots ahead of Matt Fitzpatrick and Will Zalatoris with a score of 201, nine under par.
Tiger Woods, meanwhile, had the worst card of his PGA Championship career, after hitting two balls into a water hazard and committing five consecutive bogeys for the first time in a Grand Slam tournament for a score of 79 (+9).
For the first time since playing on the PGA Tour, Woods has withdrawn from a major tournament. He played this third round in pain, limping constantly. The difficult conditions and his bad right leg got the better of him.
Pereira will therefore have the chance to become the first rookie on the PGA Tour to win a major since Keegan Bradley’s victory at this tournament in 2011.
“I was playing very well and suddenly I had four bogeys in five holes. It was not interesting, said the Chilean. But I found my game from the 13thand. These holes are very difficult, so I’m really happy with the way I played. Birdie at 18and is a bonus. »
So many golfers missed opportunities during this round played under a northerly wind that completely transformed the course.
Ex-tournament champion Justin Thomas went 12 holes without a birdie to give it back with a bogey on the last hole for a 74. Two-time Masters Tournament champion Bubba Watson never looked comfortable on the greens and he bogeyed three times on his last four holes to go 73. Those who were close to the leaders are now seven shots off the lead.
Rory McIlrroy, who shot +6 over 6 holes in the second half, also shot 74 and now finds himself 9 shots behind Pereira.
Zalatoris struggled as well, losing four strokes in the first seven holes to find himself from a one-stroke lead to a five-stroke deficit before slowly coming back into the game.
“I was quite frustrated with my start, but I prefer having a frustrating start and a good end to the round,” Zalatoris philosophized. It gives rhythm to start the last round. »
In his second major, Pereira will find himself in the last group with Fitzpatrick, who birdied his last two holes to put up a 67.
Zalatoris will play alongside Cameron Young, who shot 67 thanks to an eagle at 17and. He’s four shots off the lead.
What these four golfers have in common is their inexperience at the highest level. None won a major. None have even won on the PGA Tour. Fitzpatrick, 17and in the world rankings, has however signed seven victories on the European circuit.
Only 16 golfers are below par at Southern Hills, including Webb Simpson, who had to save par from a bunker on his last hole to avoid being cut for the weekend rounds. Tied at 64and rank, it moved to a tie at 10and thanks to a card of 65.
He’s eight shots off the lead, probably too far to catch Pereira, but it’s unclear how well the Chilean will be able to withstand the pressure this Sunday.