With the best golfers in the world piled up behind him, Sergio Garcia maintained his perch in the top spot at TPC Boston Sunday Sergio thanks to a 6-under-par 65 in the third round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. The tournament is the Spaniard’s to lose, heading into its traditional Labor Day finish.
On a day where players could afford to be aggressive, the Spaniard looked unfazed en route to a three-round score of 19-under, two strokes clear of Henrik Stenson, who fired a third-round 66.
Play was suspended early Sunday morning as an intense band of heavy rain and lightning passed through the Boston area, softening an already largely defenseless golf course and wiping out the rounds of the players who had already begun their Sunday play. When play resumed, just after noon E.T., players went out off both tees in threesomes, and there was a “get while the gettin’s good” mentality amongst the Tour’s best in Norton.
Players who “got” on Sunday
Canadian Graham DeLaet carded a spectacular third-round 62. His only bogey of the day came at the benign first hole. He notched 10 birdies to offset the blunder, and vaulted into a tie for third at 16-under, three strokes behind Garcia. Veterans Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker both carded third-round 63s, the latter with an impressive eagle at the final hole to move to 16-under.
Kevin Stadler and Kevin Chappell shared both a first name and a score Sunday, getting around TPC Boston in 64 strokes each. Their 7-under marks vaulted each of them inside the top-10 entering the final round. It was another 64 Sunday that will capture much more attention, however. Rory McIlroy, with girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki watching for much of the round, made nine birdies against a double bogey at the 14th hole for a 64 of his own. For the Ulsterman, the score was his lowest of the year and marks the continuation of his return to form at a tournament where he won last year.
A few standouts seemed incapable of “getting” anything other than a helping of frustration Sunday. Most notably, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson struggled on a day where the scoring average was nearly three full strokes under par. Woods carded his worst score in his last 10 tries at TPC Boston, derailed by a string of three straight bogeys to begin his second nine, en route to one-over par 72.
“I didn’t play very well today,” Woods said. “I didn’t hit it well and didn’t make anything.”
Likewise, Phil Mickelson stalled heading into port with bogeys at Nos. 15 and 16, eventually finishing with a third-round 71.
Here’s a look at how the leaderboard stacks up after the third round:
