Chaotic third round sees many new faces vault to top of the leaderboard at Safeway Open
By Kyle Foster
Twitter: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
Now is when things get real. After all, it is the third round of the Safeway Open at Silverado Resort & Spa.
But in all fairness, to have two solid rounds of play to get here and possibly win the tournament is a big deal.
Moving day stood up to its name as there were quite a bit of new faces at the top of the leaderboard when all was said and done. A big reason for chaos was the fact that the course dried out, which meant firm and fast greens.
As the day went on, it was almost as if you were doomed to move to the top of the leaderboard. But when it all ended, there was a three-way tie for the lead.
One of the co-leaders after three rounds of play is James Hahn. He was able to birdie the 16th hole to put him at 16-under and claim the tournament lead. Hahn began his day with three straight birdies on holes three through five while also collecting birdies on 12, 14, and 18. After back-to-back rounds of five-under, 67, he shot one stroke better and ended the day at six-under to put him at -16 total.
“I just had a goal in mind today just to kind of have a clean scorecard,” Hahn said of his round. “Would have been nice to birdie a couple of the par 5s, but anytime you birdie three out of the four par 3s I think you’re doing something good.”
Another co-leader is Brian Stuard is another one of those new names that are suddenly in contention as the tournament heads to its final day. He had a very good day overall. He made a total of six birdies to give him a score of six-under, 66. This is the second straight day he’s shot a 66 after a 69 round on Thursday.
“The golf course is soft, greens are pretty receptive,” Stuard reflected. “You’ve got to make a bunch of birdies, that’s the name of the game this week.”
The final co-leader is Cameron Percy. After a bit of an up-and-down round, a birdie on 17 moved him into a tie for the lead. Percy had a pair of bogeys on 11 and 15, but besides that played pretty well. Including the birdie that gave him the lead on 17, he made a total of six birdies.
One of the players in contention for the victory is Kristoffer Ventura. His round was highlighted by an eagle on the par-five, 572-yard ninth hole. Besides the eagle, he also converted on six birdies while also having two bogeys. Overall, Ventura hit 16 of 18 greens in regulation, which certainly helped the cause.
“Obviously, started off really well,” Ventura said. “Everything was going in and kind of hit the brakes a little bit with a couple (of) bogeys. It was unfortunate, but it was nice to finish with a birdie and overall pretty happy with the day.”
Ventura is one of three players tied for fourth. Sam Burns, who held the lead after the second round, shot a par for the day to stay at 15-under. Harry Higgs is the final player lumped up at 15-under.
Other notable players to make a jump include Emiliano Grillo, the 2015 champion. He’s currently tied for seventh with five other players.
The final round will again be in pars. Golf Channell will have their coverage beginning at 3 pm.
