Saturday's Birdies and Bogeys

By Alex Myers

May 10, 2013

Shop This Look

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: David Lingmerth

What do we know about the Swedish rookie? Not much. He came out of nowhere to shoot a 62 and lose in a playoff at the Humana Challenge in his second-ever PGA Tour event, but since then, he's managed just a T-50, a T-51 and eight missed cuts. But he'll begin the final round tied for first place in his first Players Championship. Our Swedish colleague, Stina Sternberg, informs us that the 'h' is silent. We hope the NBC and Golf Channel announcers are informed of that before the final-round telecast.

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: Sergio Garcia

So much was made of Garcia's history of being dominated by Tiger Woods when the two play together -- a gap that's even wider on the weekend. But after an early hiccup (more on that later), the Spaniard hung and some might say even outplayed the World No. 1 the rest of the way. Garcia often seems to lack confidence in his own game, but on a course where he's won and finished runner-up, that doesn't seem to be the case.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bogey: Sergio Garcia

It's bad enough to make a blemish on your card on an easy par 5, but he didn't gain any fans for his explanation of how it happened after. In a TV interview, Garcia seemed to blame his playing partner Woodsfor causing a distraction as he was about to hit his second shot by pulling a fairway wood out of his bag while standing in the left trees. That decision caused fans around Woods to cheer, but the noise was minimal and happened early and far enough away for it not to be a big deal. Garcia went through with his shot and put it in the trees. There wasn't much chatter between these two on Saturday. That probably won't change the next time they're paired together.

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: Jeff Maggert

At this time next year, Maggert plans on mixing Champions Tour events into his schedule. He'll be coming back to this event for at least the next five years if he matches what he did on Saturday. A 66, highlighted by an outgoing 31, made him a surprise name on the leader board. And Maggert has reason to be hopeful since there's precedent for a straight hitter in his late 40s winning here. Fred Funk pulled off the feat at 48 in 2005.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bogey: Tiger Woods

An early birdie coupled with a bogey by playing partner Sergio Garcia had Woods in sole possession of first and most people ready to hand him his second crystal trophy. But Tiger three-putted his next hole and could only manage pars the rest of the way until play was called on Friday. He birdied 16 early Sunday morning to shoot a 71 and he'll still enter the final round in great shape to win for the fourth time in 2013, but he'll have to overcome a very bunched leader board to do it.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bogey: Mother Nature

From fog in California to "microbursts" at Bay Hill to snow in Tucson, the PGA Tour just can't seem to catch a break this season. Area thunderstorms caused nearly a two-hour delay on Saturday and left many players with incomplete scorecards. The good news is there's still time to crown a champion by Sunday evening. The bad news is that Sunday afternoon's forecast calls for a 30% chance of isolated thunderstorms. With the way things have gone this year, that sounds a lot more like a sure thing.

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: Louis Oosthuizen and Angel Cabrera

Sure, the two played their early Saturday round in a combined eight under, but more impressively was the time it took them to complete their round. The duo finished in under three hours and thirty minutes, proving that playing fast and playing well aren't mutually exclusive. Yes, it helped that the only golfer in front of them was the single Brian Davis, but they still kept an admirable pace. We hope some of their slower colleagues -- as well as amateurs at home -- were taking notes.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bogey: Lee Westwood

The Englishman entered the weekend as the only player in the field without a bogey on his card. He could still say that after nine holes on Saturday, but unfortunately, he made two double bogeys in the meantime. The first came on the first hole and was one of the most unusual sixes you'll ever see. With his tee shot coming to rest near a tree, Westwood whiffed on the ballas his club clipped the trunk on the downswing. Well, it was unusual if your name's not Lee Westwood. In last year's U.S. Open, Westwood had another lamentable run-in with a tree when a tee shot in the final round of the U.S. Open stayed stuck in the top of one. His 74 left him four shots back after 54 holes.

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: Davis Love III

Three months after having back surgery, the two-time Players champion returned to action to extend his tournament-record streak of playing in this event for a 28th consecutive year. But the 49-year-old made it clear he wasn't just teeing it up for fun. After making the cut, a front-nine 32 on Saturday had him flirting with the top 10. He stumbled down the stretch, but a 70, along with Maggert's 66, made for a strong showing by the soon-to-be senior set.

Photo By: Getty Images

Bogey: Kevin Chappell

The surprise name in a final two pairings that included Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood certainly looked like a player not used to a situation of that magnitude. Chappell bogeyed four of his first five holes to fall out of contention. It didn't get any better for the 26-year-old when he came back to the course to finish his third round. He found the water on No. 17, made a double bogey, and finished with a 78 to fall into a tie for 37th place.

Photo By: Getty Images

Birdie: Ryan Palmer

Palmer bogeyed two of his first five holes on Saturday, but a back-nine rally got him to red numbers for the day and into the top five heading into Sunday. That alone would be worthy of a "birdie," but the fact he's been playing with a heavy heart the past two days makes his performance even more impressive. Clay Aderholt, one of Palmer's best friends, died in a car accident Thursday night. As the story of that tragedy spreads, expect Palmer to pick up even more support at TPC Sawgrass.

Photo By: Getty Images

RBC Heritage

Saturday's Birdies and Bogeys

Shop This Look

Birdie: David Lingmerth

Birdie: Sergio Garcia

Bogey: Sergio Garcia

Birdie: Jeff Maggert

Bogey: Tiger Woods

Bogey: Mother Nature

Birdie: Louis Oosthuizen and Angel Cabrera

Bogey: Lee Westwood

Birdie: Davis Love III

Bogey: Kevin Chappell

Birdie: Ryan Palmer