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RIDGEDALE, Mo. (AP) — Defending champions Vijay Singh and Carlos Franco took the third-round lead Saturday in the windy Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf at Big Cedar Lodge.
Singh and Franco shot a 7-under 47 in wind gusting to 20 mph on the Top of the Rock par-3 course to get to 19-under 145, a stroke ahead of the teams of David Toms-Steve Flesch and Paul Broadhurst-Kirk Triplett.
“It was a tough day,” Singh said. “The wind was swirling, have to get the club right and we made some putts. Carlos played really well on the back nine and I played really well on the front nine, so we ham-and-egged it a little.”
Toms and Flesch also shot 47, and Broadhurst and Triplett had a 33 on the 13-hole Mountain Top par-3 course.
“We just paired well together,” Toms said. “I don’t think either one of us played great. We picked each other up out there.”
Wind and rain is expected Sunday when the team finish at Top of the Rock, again playing the front nine in alternate shot and the back nine in better ball.
“Make as many birdies as possible and see what happens,” Singh said. “That’s all we can do.”
Singh and Franco are trying to become the first to successfully defend a title since Jim Colbert and Andy North in 2001. Singh won the Toshiba Classic in March for his first individual PGA TOUR Champions title.
Flesch won the Mitsubishi Electric Classic last week in Georgia for his first PGA TOUR Champions victory.
Tom Lehman and Bernhard Langer had a 34 at Mountain Top to join Spanish stars Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jose Maria Olazabal at 17 under. Jimenez and Olazabal had a 33 at Mountain Top.
Langer took the final-round forecast in stride.
“We’ve done it hundreds of times before and we’ll probably do it again,” Langer said. “We’ll make the best of it. We both have a good attitude. We’re known to play in all sorts of weather and I just look forward to playing one more day with my partner here.”
Wisconsin neighbors Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly were 16 under after a 48 at Top of the Rock.
John Daly and Michael Allen, the second-round leaders after a 46 at Top of the Rock, had a 37 at Mountain Top to drop into a tie for seventh at 15 under.
NOTEBOOK
Carlos Franco / Vijay Singh (-19)
• Playing Top of the Rock on Saturday, defending champions Franco and Vijay were 4-under on the front nine playing alternate shot (5 birdies, 1 bogey), and they were 3-under on the back nine playing best ball (3 birdies). They shot a third-round, 7-under 47 and lead by one at 19-under.
• Should Franco and Singh win again, they would be the first team to successfully defend their title since Jim Colbert and Andy North won in 2000 and 2001.
• The last time a tournament was won by a defending champion was when Bernhard Langer won the 2017 Regions Tradition. This season, the best finish by a defending champion was T16 (Langer at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai).
• If Singh and Franco go on to win, it would be Singh’s first multi-win season since 2008, when he won three times en route to the FedExCup title. For Franco, it would be his third career victory on PGA TOUR Champions.
• Franco has played in all eight tournaments so far this season, and his best finish was a T10 at the Toshiba Classic. He is currently 44th in the Charles Schwab Cup.
• Singh’s 2018 season includes a win at the Toshiba Classic, his second career victory and first individual win on PGA TOUR Champions. He has three top-10s in five starts and is No. 4 in the Charles Schwab Cup. He has also played six events on the PGA TOUR, and his best finish was 49th at the Masters.
Steve Flesch / David Toms (-18)
• Playing Top of the Rock on Saturday, Flesch and Toms carded three front-nine birdies in the alternate shot format, and they followed with four back-nine birdies in best ball.
• Last year, Toms partnered with Jeff Maggert and finished T22, while Flesch is making his tournament debut.
• This season, Toms ranks T11 on Tour in par-3 birdie percentage (16.67%) and he ranks T7 in par-3 scoring average (3.00). Flesch ranks T55 (8.33%) and T60 (3.17) in those categories.
• Flesch is coming off a win at last week’s Mitsubishi Electric Classic, his first victory on PGA TOUR Champions. He broke a streak of 169 consecutive starts without a win (148 PGA TOUR, 21 PGA TOUR Champions), and he became the 14th player with wins on the Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions.
• Toms has four top-five finishes in six starts this season, and he is currently No. 5 in the Charles Schwab Cup. He leads the Tour in putting average (1.690 putts per GIR), scoring average (69.17) and is T4 in birdie average (4.67 birdies per round).
• Should Toms and Flesch go on to win, it would be Toms’ first victory since the 2011 Fort Worth Invitational, and he would become the 15th player to win on the Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR Champions. Since his last pro win, Toms has made 138 pro starts (110 PGA TOUR, 28 PGA TOUR Champions).
Paul Broadhurst / Kirk Triplett (-18)
• Playing the 13-hole Mountain Top on Saturday, Broadhurst and Triplett made six birdies in best ball.
• Broadhurst is making his tournament debut, while Triplett is making his fifth start, with his best previous finish being third with Craig Stadler in 2014.
• Broadhurst is looking for his first victory since the 2016 PURE Insurance Championship. His 2016 season also include a win at The Senior Open Championship, and those two victories helped him secure PGA TOUR Champions Rookie of the Year honors.
• This season, Broadhurst’s best finish was T10 at the Boca Raton Championship, and he is currently 37th in the Charles Schwab Cup.
• Triplett has played in all eight tournaments this season, and his best finish was fifth in the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai. He has five career wins on PGA TOUR Champions, with his last coming at the 2016 American Family Insurance Championship.
Other notes
• Tom Lehman and Bernhard Langer shot 5-under at Mountain Top on Saturday and are T4 at 17-under. The team has a combined six Charles Schwab Cups, and this is Langer’s first appearance at this event since 2016, when he and Lehman were T8.
• Lehman and Langer paired up to win this tournament in 2009 when it was played in Savannah, Georgia. Should they go on to win, it would mark the 11th tournament Langer has won more than once.
• Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jose Maria Olazabal shot 6-under at Mountain Top on Saturday, and they are T4 at 17-under. The Spaniards were teammates at the 1999 Ryder Cup, and the pair went 1-0-1 in their two four-ball matches as partners. Last year, Jimenez and Olazabal finished T8 in their debut as a team.
• Should Jimenez and Olazabal go on to win, it would be Olazabal’s first win in his 18th start on PGA TOUR Champions. For Jimenez, it would be his fifth career win, and it would extend his streak to five consecutive years with a win on PGA TOUR Champions.
• Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly, the Nos. 1 and 2 players in the Charles Schwab Cup, are in sixth at 16-under, three shots behind Franco and Singh. If the Wisconsin duo goes on to win, it would be the third victory for Stricker, who has won in his last two starts on PGA TOUR Champions (Cologuard Classic, Rapiscan Systems Classic). For Kelly, it would be his second win of the season and fourth of his career. This team is also scheduled to compete together at next week’s Zurich Classic.
