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ORLANDO — Daniel Berger will have to wait more than 12 hours to officially lead the Arnold Palmer Invitational after 54 holes.
That is, if he hangs onto the lead.
Berger walked off the Bay Hill course with a two-shot lead over playing partner, and Jupiter neighbor, Akshay Bhatia when play was suspended March 7 because of darkness. Berger, though, has a 33-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th, a hole Bhatia opted to finish and made a birdie.
The round included a delay of more than an hour because of rain. Four players did not finish their third round when play was suspended at 6:30 p.m. They will return Sunday at 8 a.m.
Berger is 13-under, just where he was after the second round. Bhatia closed the gap with birdies on No. 15 and 16.
Three players who finished their third rounds sit within four shots of the lead; Sepp Straka (66), Jupiter's Cameron Young (67) and Collin Morikawa (70).
Berger, 32, is seeking his fourth PGA Tour victory, first since the 2021 Pebble Beach Pro Am.
The 67-minute delay softened sun-baked greens and led to lower scores the final 2 1/2 hours of play. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler went on a birdie binge when play resumed. Scheffler finished with a 72 in a round in which he had five birdies, four bogeys and a double-bogey on No. 18.
Scheffler, who enters the final round at 3-under, had four bogeys in his first seven holes and five birdies in six holes on the back nine, including four in a row.
"It changed the speed significantly," he said about the rain. "(The greens) went from basically dead to somewhat maybe alive. I would say early in the round and really pretty much Thursday and Friday there wasn't a lot of friction on there, and I think the rain created a little bit of friction to where your ball was more rolling I think instead of kind of skidding is how I would describe it."
Straka described the greens as "a little slower, a little more receptive," after the rain.
Jupiter's Rory McIlroy withdrew from the tournament prior to his third round after suffering a back injury during a morning workout.
"While warming up in the gym this morning, I felt a small twinge in my back," McIlroy said in a statement. "As I started hitting balls on the range before the round, it worsened and developed into muscle spasms in my lower back. Unfortunately, I’m not able to continue and have to withdraw.
"I was excited to compete this weekend. I wish the Arnold Palmer Invitational a great finish and look forward to being back next year.”
Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Daniel Berger leading Arnold Palmer, third round will finish Sunday
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That is, if he hangs onto the lead.
Berger walked off the Bay Hill course with a two-shot lead over playing partner, and Jupiter neighbor, Akshay Bhatia when play was suspended March 7 because of darkness. Berger, though, has a 33-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th, a hole Bhatia opted to finish and made a birdie.
The round included a delay of more than an hour because of rain. Four players did not finish their third round when play was suspended at 6:30 p.m. They will return Sunday at 8 a.m.
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Berger is 13-under, just where he was after the second round. Bhatia closed the gap with birdies on No. 15 and 16.
Three players who finished their third rounds sit within four shots of the lead; Sepp Straka (66), Jupiter's Cameron Young (67) and Collin Morikawa (70).
Berger, 32, is seeking his fourth PGA Tour victory, first since the 2021 Pebble Beach Pro Am.
The 67-minute delay softened sun-baked greens and led to lower scores the final 2 1/2 hours of play. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler went on a birdie binge when play resumed. Scheffler finished with a 72 in a round in which he had five birdies, four bogeys and a double-bogey on No. 18.
Scheffler, who enters the final round at 3-under, had four bogeys in his first seven holes and five birdies in six holes on the back nine, including four in a row.
"It changed the speed significantly," he said about the rain. "(The greens) went from basically dead to somewhat maybe alive. I would say early in the round and really pretty much Thursday and Friday there wasn't a lot of friction on there, and I think the rain created a little bit of friction to where your ball was more rolling I think instead of kind of skidding is how I would describe it."
Straka described the greens as "a little slower, a little more receptive," after the rain.
Rory McIlroy withdraws from API with back injury
Jupiter's Rory McIlroy withdrew from the tournament prior to his third round after suffering a back injury during a morning workout.
"While warming up in the gym this morning, I felt a small twinge in my back," McIlroy said in a statement. "As I started hitting balls on the range before the round, it worsened and developed into muscle spasms in my lower back. Unfortunately, I’m not able to continue and have to withdraw.
"I was excited to compete this weekend. I wish the Arnold Palmer Invitational a great finish and look forward to being back next year.”
Tom D'Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Daniel Berger leading Arnold Palmer, third round will finish Sunday
Continue reading...
