McIlroy flirts with 59, leads Wells Fargo
When Rory McIlroy rolled in an 8-foot birdie putt on the 13th hole, he started thinking about shooting 59.
He didn’t quite get there Saturday, settling for an 11-under 61 to break the Quail Hollow record and take a four-shot lead in the Wells Fargo Championship.
Locally, Steve Wheatcroft was cruising at 6-under when got a triple-bogey on No. 16 and double-bogey on 17 after sending shots into the water on each hole. He is tied for 50th at 2-under par.
After making nine birdies in a 10-hole stretch, the top-ranked McIlroy pushed his 7-iron on the par-3 17th hole to the right side of the green 40 feet from the cup. He settled for par and the dream was dashed.
“I was little disappointed with not finishing it off the way I wanted to, but still it was a great run,” McIlroy said.
It was McIlroy’s best round on the PGA Tour.
He said he had a putt for 59 on the 18th hole at The Bear’s Club in Jupiter, Florida, leading up to the Masters, but missed it.
“I left it short,” McIlroy said with a laugh.
Maggert out front in Champions tourney: Jeff Maggert birdied the final two holes in heavy rain for a 4-under 68 and sole possession of the lead after the third round of the Champions Tour’s Regions Tradition.
Maggert moved to 14 under with the strong finish after entering the day tied for the top spot with Kevin Sutherland at Shoal Creek. Sutherland was a stroke back. His birdie attempt on No. 18 missed by a couple of inches to set up a tap-in for a 69.
Pampling ahead at Web.com vent: Australia’s Rod Pampling shot a 2-under 69 at Thornblade Club to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the Web.com Tour’s BMW Charity Pro-Am.
The 45-year-old Pampling had a 20-under 195 total. He opened with consecutive 9-under 63s at The Reserve at Lake Keowee and Green Valley Country Club to take a four-stroke lead.
French woman sets pace at LPGA event: France’s Perrine Delacour took advantage of Alison Lee’s late two-hole meltdown to take the third-round lead Saturday in the Kingsmill Championship.
The 21-year-old Delacour, winless in two seasons on the LPGA Tour, birdied three of the final five holes for a 4-under 67.
She had an 11-under 202 total on Kingsmill Resort’s River Course.