Sony Open 2023 Leaderboard, Scores: Hayden Buckley Leads After Round 3 as Trying to Win First PGA Tour Title
Twelve players took the lead at some point during the third round of the Sony Open 2023 on Saturday. Swapping hands several times, it eventually fell to Hayden Buckley, who came in at bottom 15 after a lap of 6 under 64 on Move Day. With a two-stroke lead, the PGA Tour sophomore will get a taste of the first round of competition on his debut in 2023.
As a member of the last group in the final round of a PGA Tour event for the first time in his career, Buckley is sure to have moments of anxiety, the overnight leader. With some uncertainty surrounding how he will handle the situation, the rest of the field – namely his Sunday rivals David Lipsky and Ben Taylor in the lower division 13 years old – it will be very difficult if Buckley slips.
Friday’s overnight lead, Chris Kirk, will lead the penultimate group and also come in at 13 under 68 after a second half under 68. Start his day by hitting a tee shot out of bounds. , Georgia Bulldog has previously shown determination and still has a chance to win its first PGA Tour title since 2015.
Former Players’ Championship champion Si Woo Kim sits at 12 under 12 after a fine six-under 64 on Saturday. However, the round of the tournament went to Andrew Putnam, who put himself back into the thick of the game with a record of 8 under 62. With his efforts, Putnam will join Kirk and Kim and the penultimate group with 12 points below.
Leadership
1. Hayden Buckley (-15)
Not one, but two nine-backed eagles propelled Buckley to the lead as he covered about 130 yards on the 10th par-4 and fired a 5-iron into the par finish. -5 to set up his second eagle of the day. Apart from these two moments, the rest of his round was relatively pedestrian as he hit the fairways and greens and settled for the odds with a smile on his face. This same strategy can yield great returns when those behind him are forced to chase the young birds.
“Nothing has changed. Obviously the situation is huge, but nothing has really changed,” Buckley said of his first 54-hole lead. “I know the conditions can be a bit tougher tomorrow, so I’ll be patient. But yes, our strategy remains the same. We try our best to keep the ball in the lane because of that. is where we can play well We feel like anywhere inside 180 degrees almost from the fairway is pretty close to scoring for us, and so we do what we can to get the ball in. fairway, and as we watch, if they come in, they go. If not, we just deal with it.”
other candidates
T2. David Lipsky, Ben Taylor, Chris Kirk (-13)
T5. Andrew Putnam, Si Woo Kim (-12)
T7. Will Gordon, Nat Lashley (-11)
T9. Ben Griffin, Maverick McNealy, JT Poston, Austin Eckroat, Taylor Montgomery (-10)
At last year’s Sony Open, Hideki Matsuyama won 63-63 over the weekend to chase Russell Henley. After Saturday’s round, Putnam was the leading candidate to follow in the footsteps of the defending champion. Holding the second-longest run of cuts on the PGA Tour, the 33-year-old is in the midst of some quality form. Still without a win, Putnam nearly broke through at the Zozo Championship but ended up losing by one stroke to Keegan Bradley.
“I played great,” Putnam said. “I played great on my first nine shots. Think I lost by five. A couple of loose turns, a few bogeys that I don’t normally do, and then the hot ball hit. Up Take some long shots Make sure my shot hits a pretty high hit for this round Seems to be a lot easier The wind didn’t really go up Yesterday afternoon it was just blowing normal trade winds. Today, yes, it’s achievable, so expect some highs.”
More photos of the day
We’ll start things off with Lipsky’s approach on the par-4 16 hole. With the ball at his feet in the fairway bunker, Lipsky made his approach to touch the gap and immediately put him ahead. This shot could have gone a number of ways and a kick to the net is definitely near the bottom of my list of possible outcomes.
Next, we go to Kirk, who is in need of a birdie after a bogey on the front hole on hole 13. Losing his right approach, Kirk misses on his side and faces a hit. down the sand pit down the slope. It may not look serious from a television perspective, but this shot is absolutely filthy and shows some serious hand speed at impact.
2023 Sony Open updated odds and picks
- Hayden Buckley: October 19
- Chris Kirk: 6-1
- David Lipsky: 7-1
- Si Woo Kim: 8-1
- Ben Taylor: 8-1
- Andrew Putnam: 10-1
- Will Gordon: 25-1
- Taylor Montgomery: 35-1
- JT Poston: 35-1
- Maverick McNealy: 40-1
- Nate Lashley: 50-1
- Ben Griffin: 70-1
- SH Lee: 80-1
- KH Lee: 90-1
Buckley’s approach numbers from Saturday will be skewed due to his hole eagle and near albatross at the end, but it’s another aspect of his game that leads me to believe he’s got it. close the deal on Sunday. Ranked 11th for 54-hole Driving Accuracy, the Mizzou product leads all the products in the top 5 for these statistics. With conditions likely to become more difficult and fairways continuing to be a priority, I hope Buckley’s presence from the start will help him land his first PGA Tour win.
Rick Gehman and Greg DuCharme recap Saturday’s action at the Sony Open in Hawaii. Follow and listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
