Finally, the inevitable announcement: play has been abandoned for the day. It’s going to be a long one tomorrow. And possibly Monday. And Tuesd... no, let’s not even go there. Let’s just see how things pan out in the morning, and take it from there. It’s been a frustrating day for just about everyone except Kevin Kisner and Padraig Harrington. Here’s to a more pleasant Sunday. Keep your fingers crossed, and be sure to join us for the conclusion of the third round at the very least. Nighty night everyone, keep safe and dry!
The course is flooding under heavy rain. Given there’s only a couple of hours of daylight left, the PGA really should put the players out of their misery today. But they’re still hanging on. “Why would the PGA give Baltusrol the tournament in late July?” wonders Stu Matthews. “Sure it’s a great historic hard course but did they not consider this area of New Jersey has a 44% chance of precipitation on any given day, as well as a 19% chance of thunderstorms any given day? Plus it’s hotter than Donald Trump’s armpits? Guess they wanted a six-day tournament and that’s what they’ll get.” And here we all were worrying about the Olympics turning into a farce.
There was, of course, some play earlier. And though the leaders didn’t get the chance to clack a Titleist in anger, there’s been some slight movement on the leaderboard:
-9: Walker, Streb
-7: Grillo, Day
-6: Stenson
-5: Kisner (F), Kaymer, Reed, Koepka
-4: Harrington (F), Simpson (6), McGirt (2), Summerhays (2), Matsuyama, English, Fowler, Donaldson
While we wait for the PGA to call time on day three ... here’s proof that, three hours after play was suspended, I’m not just shouting down a freshly dug hole in the back yard. A reader! It’s Simon McMahon: “Might as well include Wednesday while we’re at it.” He’s either dejected, resigned or excited. Difficult to say.
Thing is, the weather forecast isn’t too great tomorrow, either. Or Monday! The chances of the PGA’s holy grail, a Sunday finish, look pretty darn slim right now. But even getting the job done on Monday isn’t a given. This is all worst-case scenario stuff, but just so we’re aware of the infinite possibilities.
No official confirmation yet, but word from Baltusrol is that it might not be long before the plug is pulled on day three. One hour, they said. Nothing to see here!
This second band of dangerous weather appears to be taking its sweet time to arrive at Baltusrol, never mind pass through it. A suggestion that it still might be 30 minutes to an hour away. That really doesn’t augur well for any more play today. There are only four hours of daylight left, if that. Shave off an hour or so for the players to warm up and get back into position on the course ahead of a resumption, and we’re beginning to cut it a bit fine. The PGA will desperately want a Sunday finish, but cramming in 36 holes for the leading groups tomorrow might be pushing it, especially as the weather isn’t going to be perfect then either. Play on Monday is a distinct possibility now, just as it was here in 2005. Can the PGA manage to squeeze in a few holes of play tonight? Hmm. One hour, they said!
“If we don’t get too much rain [during the aforementioned second cell of bad weather] we hope to get out in a little while.” Kerry Haigh, the chief championship officer of the PGA, there. So we obviously still need to hang about for a bit, but providing the course doesn’t take too much of a battering when the rain comes through, there is hope for more play today!
The PGA are “cautiously hopeful” that we’ll get some play again today. A bit more realistic than that “one-hour” suspension, huh. The first cell of bad weather has passed, and we’re now in a lull, but there’s no point getting everyone out again yet because another cell of rain and lightning is coming along in roughly 30 minutes. But that may not hang around too long, and after that, it could be quite calm for some time. They’re still hoping to finish tomorrow, one way or another. Though it all rides on getting at least some more golf in today. Fingers crossed.
It really is pelting down now. Stair rods. We could be a while. Sit tight.
That PGA announcement of “approximately one hour” looks pretty damn optimistic right now. Rain has arrived at Baltusrol, but no thunder yet, and the serious stuff on the satellite maps is still heading towards the course. The 2002 champion Rich Beem, in situ in his day job for Sky Sports after shooting 72 today - he’s +3 - suggests we could be waiting for a couple of hours at least. Everyone’s hopeful of getting some golf later on, but finishing the third round tonight is almost certainly a pipe dream now. That could mean a very busy Sunday, with an early start, split tee times, threeballs and all sorts, but a Monday finish isn’t beyond the realms. Anyway, first things first: so much for that “one hour”. Tick, tock. We’ll keep you posted.
The players are making their way back to the safety of the clubhouse. Frustrating for all of them, frustrating for all of us, frustrating for the 45,000 paying punters at Baltusrol, many of whom will soon be getting soaked through. It’s especially frustrating for Marc Leishman, though. He’s with Russell Knox on the 18th green. The pair know the klaxon is about to sound, and any shot hit afterwards incurs a penalty. So Knox, having nearly drained a 50-footer for birdie, sprints to the hole to tap in. He’ll sign for a 67. He’s -3. Leishman lines up a putt from eight feet for his 67 - and there goes the horn. He’ll have to come back when play restarts. They enjoy a good laugh, but the Scot will find that more humorous than the Aussie. Play is likely to be suspended, according to a PGA announcement, for “approximately one hour”. We’ll see. Back with more, when we have it!
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Bubba finds the par-five 18th in two effortless strokes, then takes three miserable putts for his par. That kind of mirrors his round. A level-par 70, and after a fast start, he’s ended up going nowhere. Back on 2, the in-form William McGirt, who recently won his first Tour event at the age of 36, rattles in a 25-footer across 2: he’s -4. Jordan Spieth sends his second into 2 pin high, 20 feet from the flag, and the second his ball lands, the klaxon sounds. Play has been suspended due to threat of lightning. We knew it was coming.
Spieth lashes out of the fairway bunker at 1, finding the centre of the green. He’s left himself a huge birdie putt, a 40-footer with a large right-to-left break, but he’s so close to knocking it in. That’s a fine par, and so nearly an outrageous start to his round. He stays at -3. But some spectacular stuff up on 2, where Daniel Summerhays, from the middle of the fairway, wedges high towards the flag. One bounce, 12 inches from the cup, and it disappears down the hole! Eagle! An eventful start, given he’d dropped a stroke at the opening hole. He’s -4. After a top-ten finish at Oakmont, he’ll be dreaming of another high finish at a major. Or something better?
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Jordan Spieth, who had a very average Thursday but a much more impressive Friday, has worked his way back into this competition. At -3, six off the halfway lead, he’ll be hoping to add the PGA to a precocious portfolio that already contains Masters and US Open victories. Driving into the bunker down the left of 1 isn’t the start he was after, then. He’s battled well this week, scrambling brilliantly; more of that genius is required from the get-go. Elsewhere, Bourdy hands his birdie straight back to the field on 3. He’s -3 again. His playing partner, the 2013 Masters champion Adam Scott, is going along in bizarro style: bogey at 2, birdie at 3, and he’s also where he started at -3.
Par for Kevin Kisner on 18. He doesn’t quite hit his 15-foot birdie effort, but that’s a brilliant 65 anyway. He’s -5, and the new clubhouse leader. Back on 2, Gregory Bourdy teases a 30-foot right-to-left curler into the cup for a birdie that takes him to -4. On 1, Billy Hurley III drains one of similar distance for an opening birdie that raises him to -4. Back-to-back birdies for the 2012 US Open champ Webb Simpson at 3 and 4: he’s -4. And birdie for John Senden on 3; he’s -3. It’s all happening, though for how much longer remains to be seen: a weather warning has been posted on the leaderboards, with a thundersquall coming at Baltusrol from the south-west. Here’s hoping it somehow bodyswerves New Jersey, but the forecast isn’t great. If there is a weather delay, fingers crossed it’ll be brief, because this is already a fantastic day’s golf, and none of the leading bunch have hit a shot yet.
More bother for Beef, who is falling apart like an overdunked Arby’s French Dip. He’s driven into a fairway bunker down 8. He then pulls a wild second over the bunkers to the left of the green. He’s in thick filth, with a downhill lie, and snookered by sand. With not much green to play with on the other side, he tries a cute one over the bunker but doesn’t reach the putting surface. His ball snags in the fringe, and he duffs his chip out of that. He nearly curls in the left-to-right bogey putt from 15 feet, but that’s a double on one of the shortest par fours at Baltusrol. That’s golf, ladies and gents! He crashes down to +1.
Bubba’s round has unravelled completely. It’s three bogeys in four holes now, the latest the result of a heavy chip from the fringe at 15. He’s unable to make the ten-footer coming back, and he’s back where he started at level par. And it’s a similar story for Beef, who gets a flyer out of thick rough to the side of 7. What’s supposed to be a short chip sails 40 feet past the hole, and he’s not raking in the par putt. He’s come full circle, back to -1.
Hats (and sponsored caps) off to Francesco Molinari! The erstwhile Ryder Cup hero started out with a double bogey, dropped another shot at 3, then bogeyed 11. No matter! He’s just rolled in a birdie putt on 18, and that’s his sixth bird in a row. A feat right up there with Jason Day’s seven in eight yesterday. That really is an astonishing run! His earlier travails mean he’s too far back to be a factor in this championship - he ends the third round at -1 - but that’s some way to card a 68. He walks off the green with a huge grin across his mush. “Wooooooo!” trills the irrepressible Butch Harmon on Sky. “That’ll make your lunch feel fantastic!”
The veteran steady-eddie Steve Stricker is famed for his brilliant putting. But his all-round short game ain’t too scruffy. He splashes out delicately from a bunker at the front of 7, sending his ball bouncing softly towards the cup, and eventually rolling quietly in. The crowd make up the volume. He leaps out of the bunker with a huge smile on his face. That’s his second birdie of the day, and he’s up to -2. Meanwhile it’s three birdies on the bounce for Kevin Kisner, who slides in a 15-footer on the long par-five 17th, and he’s -5. If he can do something magical on the last, he could be right in the mix tomorrow should any late stormy weather disrupt the leaders. A lot of the field will still fancy their chances here. Hmm, stating the obvious. That’s why they call it Moving Day, isn’t it.
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Beef in a spot of bother down the right of 6. He’s driven into tight rough, but he clips his ball to the back of the green, then very nearly teases in a huge left-to-right curler from 30 feet. He taps in for his par. Bedlam, brouhaha, bedlam. He stays at -2. A penny for the thoughts of his pal and compatriot Andy Sullivan, who is going round with him in steady pars, and very much the sideshow today. I guess he won’t mind too much, the heat off. Meanwhile, last year’s Open runner-up Marc Leishman is going well: birdies at 8, 10 and now 13, and he’s zipping up the leaderboard to -3.
A fine end to a very fine round by Padraig Harrington. The 2008 champion - Po’ Sergio! Po’ Sergio’s a-cold! - pings a fairway wood into the heart of 18. He doesn’t give his 25-foot eagle putt any chance of reaching the hole, a poor effort, but he digs deep to knock in the six-foot birdie chance, and that’s a stunning 65 from a player who will be 45 next month. The years, rolled back, right there. He’s -4 overall, and the new clubhouse leader. Meanwhile the 2015 Players Championship nearly man, Kevin Kisner, is going very well indeed. The 32-year-old South Carolinian has just birdied 15 and 16. Having gone out in 32 strokes, he’s four under for his round, and -4 overall.
Bubba very nearly chips in at 12, over the valley by the green from distance, but the ball rolls eight feet past, and he doesn’t make the par putt. He’s back to -2. And in double-quick time, he’s fallen to -1, failing to get up and down from the fringe at the back of the 13th green, his punched wedge far too tentative, though he probably shouldn’t miss the four-footer he’d left himself. Beef meanwhile hoicks his approach at 5 down a massive swale to the left of the green. A long chip up awaits. He sends one scampering up at speed, the brakes screeching on right by the hole, a fine touch. He saves par, and arrests what looked like some worrying backwards momentum. Here’s Hubert O’Hearn: “From the Department of Horrible Puns: I am waiting, just waiting, for an announcer to say ‘Beef ruminates over his putt.’ Right. I’ll shut up now.”
Bogey for Beef at 4, the result of a tee shot pushed into the meat of the green on the right. Problem is, the pin’s back left, and the putting surface is larger than a classic Arby’s roast beef sandwich. He can only lag up to ten feet, and can’t knock the second putt in. He’s back to -2, though the crowd holler in exactly the same style. Beeeeeeeeef! It doesn’t matter what he does. He could run round in circles with his trousers round his ankles, like a toddler, and the crowd would love him just the same. I hope he makes it to the Masters next year.
Since that early birdie burst, Bubba has been going along in a very strange fashion. In other words, a long run of pars. He’s still -3 overall, through 11. But what a par save at 10: having dumped his second into a bunker on the left, shortsiding himself, he splashed past the pin to 10 feet, the best he could do, and stroked in the saver. There’s a possibility this run might come to an end soon, though. He hooks his tee shot into thick oomska to the right of a swale at the par-three 12th, then turns to berate some clown who had critiqued his sweet style mid-downswing. “Hey buddy!” begins Bubba, before the microphone perhaps wisely cuts out. Hopefully that was the precursor to a fully descriptive return volley of abuse. The two-time Masters champ would be well within his rights.
Thing not to forget about Beef, amid all the cult-hero carry-on, is that he’s a damn fine golfer. From the centre of 3, he whips a short iron straight at the flag, tucked away behind a bunker on the left. Not a big landing zone there, he had to get that spot on. That’s six feet from the pin, a chance for a second birdie of the day. And he strokes it in. He’s up the leaderboard to -3 already. Meanwhile an opening birdie for Branden Grace, who moves to -3. And birdie for Phil Mickelson at 18, and Lefty signs for a 68. He’s -1 for the tournament.
Beef - now sponsored by French Dip specialists Arby’s, though in a perfect world he really should be sporting the smiling-golf-glove corporate identity of Hamburger Helper - lands his second at 2 ten feet from the cup. But the ball spins back hysterically and he’s left with a 25-footer for birdie. He very nearly makes it, the ball curling an inch wide left of the hole. Not quite. He stays at -2. Back on 1, his compatriot Paul ‘Chick-fil-A’ Casey makes birdie, and he’s -3.
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Phil Mickelson livened up proceedings yesterday with a magical mystery tour down 1, winging a drive OB, knocking his provisional under a bush, and nearly sending another shot into someone’s back garden. This isn’t quite as memorable - the Yellow Submarine soundtrack, perhaps - but he’s just hoyed his second at 17 from the middle of the fairway into the hospitality tent on the left. Someone in the drinker pockets the ball as a souvenir, but no worries, he gets a drop outside anyway. Then he whips an iron from the dirt track to 12 feet! He can’t quite make the birdie effort, as it skates the left of the cup. Par, but in the true Mickelson style, it’s a very singular one. It’s all too much. Meanwhile there’s another birdie for Padraig! He knocks his second at 14 to 18 inches, and tidies up to move to -3. And a birdie for Beef on 1, after sending his approach pin high to 15 feet. He’s -2!
A birdie for Justin Rose at the last, and he’s signing for a very impressive 66. He rises up the leaderboard to -2. Charl Schwartzel gets a piece of that action too: a 66, and he ends the third day at -2. They’re the very, very, very early clubhouse leaders. For what that’s worth. Back on the first tee: bedlam, bedlam, bedlam! Mr Andrew Johnston, apparently, though the crowd aren’t having a bar of that officious nonsense. Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeef! He crashes his opening drive down the middle of 1, then turns, smiles warmly, and waves his driver modestly at the gallery by way of thanks for all their support. Affection rolling down from the grandstand. He doesn’t have to do much to get them going, does he? Likeability! You either have it, or you’re a journalist you don’t.
Some other early low scorers: Padraig Harrington, the 2008 champion, carded birdies at 5 and 6, then another at 12. He’s -2 overall, and it could have been even better: he’s just been the width of a dimple away from draining a 35-foot birdie effort across 13. The 2013 US Open winner Justin Rose meanwhile only just survived the cut at +2. He’s currently on his way up 18, having started slowly with bogey at 1, then responded with birdies at 3, 4, 15 and 17: he’s -1. His playing partner, the 2011 Masters champ Charl Schwartzel, is three under for his round too. He made four birdies in a row at one point, 10 through 13. The conditions are very conducive to low scoring right now. The likes of Jason Day will be champing at the bit, and hoping thunder doesn’t roll in later to disrupt their rhythm.
Bubba can’t make his birdie putt. He looks genuinely affronted that it didn’t drop, but it was a trickly left-to-right slider. Don’t beat yourself up, Bubba; that’s par, and still a fine start to your round. Also going along nicely indeed: the US-based Scot Russell Knox. Three birdies on the bounce, at 3, 4 and 5, and he’s also fizzed up the leaderboard to -3. The early signs suggest some good scores are out there. Whether scoring can be as low as yesterday remains to be seen. The greens, which have taken on plenty of rain over the past day or two, are still receptive. That should remain the case all day, as it’s pretty humid in New Jersey. But the PGA have made sure to tuck away a few of the pins today, especially on the front nine. Par is only 70 at Baltusrol, and I guess nobody wants the first-ever major-championship 62 to happen on their watch. Robert Streb came very, very close yesterday; if he’d hit a very makeable putt on 8, his penultimate hole, he’d have broken new ground.
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Ah to hell with waiting, we might as well get on with it, because the fever’s already kicking in. Someone, please, call Dr Golf! Anyway, what could be the reason for this heightened emotional state? The early-round shenanigans of Bubba Watson, that’s what! He’s off to a flyer this morning. A shot picked up at 2, then an atmosphere-crackling putt from the fringe at the signature par-three 4th. Two early birdies, then another after wedging to three feet at 5. Having started at level par for the tournament, he’s -3 already. And he’s just set himself up for another chance at 6, with a big drive and a wedge to ten feet. The crowd are well up for this carry-on. A cauldron of anticipation. They’re in the New York groove.
Welcome to the third round of the 98th PGA Championship!
There are some seriously in-form players at this PGA. Yesterday’s second round saw Robert Streb become only the 28th man in history, albeit the third in the last 16 days, to shoot 63 at a major. He finished tied for tenth last year, so his last four rounds at the PGA make for some good reading: 67-67-68-63!
Then there’s the defending champion Jason Day. On one stretch during his 65 yesterday, he carded seven birdies in eight holes. Here’s the defending champ’s last ten rounds at the PGA: 69-65-69-72-68-67-66-67-68-65!
Jimmy Walker, the co-leader at the halfway mark with Streb, has shot 65 and 66 this week, coming off the back of a final-round 68 at the Canadian Open. Emiliano Grillo, tied third right now with Day, recently finished tied for 12th place in the Open at Troon. And of course there’s Henrik Stenson, whose last six rounds in tournament golf are 68-65-68-63-67-67, a run that’s bagged him a record-breaking Open Championship and might just have set him up to become the first non-Irishman to win the Open and PGA back-to-back since Tiger Woods in 2006 (Padraig having done it in 2008, Rory a couple of years ago).
We could go on, suffice to say another classic is brewing here. The weather might help, too. There’s a risk of heavy rain late in the day, after some early sun. It’s possible play could be suspended at some point. On the face of it, that isn’t great. On the flip side, any wet weather will make the course super-soft and super-responsive, which could lead to some more spectacular low scoring. Whatever happens, Moving Day promises to be a blast. We’ll get going here at 5pm BST. It’s on!
The 36-hole leaderboard:
-9: Walker, Streb
-7: Grillo, Day
-6: Stenson
-5: Kaymer, Reed, Koepka
-4: Matsuyama, English, Fowler, Donaldson
-3: Ikeda, Spieth, McGirt, Summerhays, Z Johnson, Hurley III, Scott, Bourdy, Tanihara
Big names missing the cut: 2012 and 2014 winner Rory McIlroy; 2009 champ YE Yang; 1998 and 2004 winner Vijay Singh; 2003 winner Shaun Micheel; 2001 winner David Toms; 1991 winner John Daly; Sergio Garcia; Luke Donald; Darren Clarke; Matt Kuchar; Graeme McDowell; Victor Dubuisson; JB Holmes; Shane Lowry; Tony Finau; and pre-tournament favourite Dustin Johnson.
And today’s tee times (local, then BST):
7.35am (12.35pm): Matt Jones, Roberto Castro
7.45am (12.45pm): Ernie Els, Rafa Cabrera-Bello
7.55am (12.55pm): Freddie Jacobson, Jason Kokrak
8.05am (1.05pm): Joost Luiten, Patton Kizzire
8.15am (1.15pm): Justin Rose, Charl Schwartzel
8.25am (1.25pm): Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Thongchai Jaidee
8.35am (1.35pm): Matthew Fitzpatrick, Jason Dufner
8.45am (1.45pm): Ryan Palmer, Billy Horschel
8.55am (1.55pm): Phil Mickelson, Colt Knost
9.05am (2.05pm): Justin Thomas, Keegan Bradley
9.15am (2.15pm): Danny Willett, Padraig Harrington
9.25am (2.25pm): Jim Furyk, Thomas Pieters
9.35am (2.35pm): Rich Beem, Francesco Molinari
9.45am (2.45pm): James Hahn, Bill Haas
9.55am (2.55pm): Aaron Baddeley, Kevin Kisner
10.05am (3.05pm): Brian Stuard, Daniel Berger
10.15am (3.15pm): Kyle Reifers, Bradley Dredge
10.25am (3.25pm): Bubba Watson, Cameron Tringale
10.35am (3.35pm): Marc Leishman, Russell Knox
10.45am (3.45pm): Jhonattan Vegas, Russell Henley
10.55am (3.55pm): George Coetzee, Ross Fisher
11.15am (4.15pm): Vaughn Taylor, Kevin Na
11.25am (4.25pm): Lee Westwood, Soren Kjeldsen
11.35am (4.35pm): Marcus Fraser, Brandt Snedeker
11.45am (4.45pm): Young-han Song, Tyrrell Hatton
11.55am (4.55pm): Steve Stricker, Danny Lee
12.05pm (5.05pm): Andy Sullivan, Andrew Johnston
12.15pm (5.15pm): Paul Casey, Scott Hend
12.25pm (5.25pm): David Lingmerth, Branden Grace
12.35pm (5.35pm): Jon Curran, KJ Choi
12.45pm (5.45pm): Louis Oosthuizen, Ryan Moore
12.55pm (5.55pm): Alex Noren, Webb Simpson
1.05pm (6.05pm): Hideto Tanihara, John Senden
1.15pm (6.15pm): Adam Scott, Gregory Bourdy
1.25pm (6.25pm): Zach Johnson, Billy Hurley III
1.45pm (6.45pm): William McGirt, Daniel Summerhays
1.55pm (6.55pm): Yuta Ikeda, Jordan Spieth
2.05pm (7.05pm): Rickie Fowler, Jamie Donaldson
2.15pm (7.15pm): Hideki Matsuyama, Harris English
2.25pm (7.25pm): Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka
2.35pm (7.35pm): Henrik Stenson, Martin Kaymer
2.45pm (7.45pm): Emiliano Grillo, Jason Day
2.55pm (7.55pm): Jimmy Walker, Robert Streb
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