J.J. Spaun emerges as Players Championship leader as severe wind rules the day
PONTE VEDRA, Fla.— You didn’t need to look at the scoreboard to know what kind of day it was at the Players Championship.You needed only to look at the exasperated expressions on the players’ faces.Really, all you needed to do was watch Scottie Scheffler.The No.
1 ranked player in the world, whose ability to remain utterly unflappable in the face of adversity is one of his superpowers, whipped his golf ball into the lake at 16 after missing a short putt and club-slammed a wedge into his bag after hitting an errant approach shot over the 18th green.Scheffler looked more rattled by the unpredictability of the gusting and swirling wind conditions that wreaked havoc on the third round on Saturday than he did when he was arrested on his way to the second round of the PGA Championship last year in Louisville.The day was diabolical.The conditions were treacherous.
The best players in the world often looked confused.Everyone appeared frustrated.Everyone except J.J.Spaun, a 34-year-old journeyman from California, who after his round on Friday opened a vein while speaking to reporters articulating about the difficulty of traveling on the PGA Tour and being away from his family.Spaun, who shot a 2-under-par 70 on Saturday, secured the 54-hole lead in style when he buried a 25-foot par-save putt that spun around the hole and disappeared into the cup.He’s one more great round away from changing his life forever, standing at 12-under par with a one-shot lead entering the final round.“I’m sure people have their opinions or doubts,’’ Spaun said, referring to the fact that he’s hardly one of the big guns many predicted to win this tournament.
“But I’m playing good, and as long as I believe that I can win this thing that’s all I really care about.’’Bud Cauley, who grew up in the shadow of TPC Sawgrass and used to attend the tournament when he was a child, is 11-under par, one shot back.Alex Smalley is 10-under.
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