84 Lumber Classic at a glance
In front Jason Gore started his round Saturday with an eagle on his way to a 5-under par 67, dropping his three-round total to 12-under and giving him a two-shot lead.
Close by
Five players – Tag Ridings, Carlos Franco, Rod Pampling, Carl Pettersson and Craig Barlow – are tied for second, while Chris DiMarco, Justin Leonard and Cameron Beckman trail by three shots. Nineteen players head into today’s final round within six strokes of the lead.
Television
Today’s fourth and final round will be televised by ESPN from 3-6 p.m.
Shot of the day
Phil Mickelson, the world’s third-ranked player and No. 3 player on the PGA Tour’s money list, aced the par-3, 201-yard No. 7, using a 7-iron.
“It made my week,” Mickelson said. “I was about to hit a 6-iron, but then I decided to go with the 7-iron and I just flushed it and landed it perfect. Even as it was trickling down by the hole, I didn’t think it would fall in … then it disappeared.”
The hole-in-one was the sixth in the tournament’s history, and fourth at Mystic Rock. The ace was also the fifth of Mickelson’s career, with his last coming in the 2001 U.S. Open.
Ben Curtis (2004), David Peoples (2004) and Mike Standly (2003) have also dunked hole-in-ones at Mystic Rock.
Quote of the day
“Those are vicious rumors.” – Gore, after being told by a reporter that Phil Mickelson said he was a good singer.
Toughest hole
No. 2. The par-4, 454-yard hole played to an average of 4.391 strokes Saturday. There were just 11 birdies on the hole, with 39 bogeys recorded. There were 11 golfers who shot double-bogey or worse.
Easiest hole
No. 8. The par-5, 540-yard hole played to an average of 4.50 strokes Saturday. There were five eagles and 67 birdies on the hole, which produced just six bogeys and one double-bogey.
Tee times to watch
Gore and Ridings will tee off at 1:40 p.m., with DiMarco and Leonard going off at 1:13. Mickelson is paired with Brian Gay and will tee off at 12:10, while Singh is paired with Kent Jones and tee off at 10:49 a.m.