COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — After leaving one chip within the tough and shedding a little bit of belief on the greens, Padraig Harrington was searching for one thing to present him hope heading into what figures to be a tumultuous last day on the topsy-turvy Broadmoor.
A chip-in from 20 yards for birdie on No. 18 did the trick. It gave Harrington a share of the lead, a spot within the last group and left him yet one more good spherical away from successful the U.S. Senior Open for the second time in 4 years.
Harrington’s chip-in Saturday pulled him right into a tie with Stewart Cink and Mark Hensby, identical as he was heading into the day. Enjoying in the identical threesome, all three shot 2-under 68 to complete at 8-under 202. Just one walked away with that additional pep in his step that comes from making a shot like that.
“It was particular to gap out on the 18th, with everyone watching, the anticipation,” Harrington stated. “It was very thrilling and really good that I did not need to hit one other shot.”
One shot behind was Thomas Bjorn, whose 66 matched the very best spherical of the day and arrange what seems to be a four-man struggle for the title.
Steve Flesch (67) was one other three photographs again at 4 underneath, and Steven Alker’s 66 left him at 3 underneath, tied with Miguel Angel Jiménez (68) and Paul Stankowski (67).
Another shot again was Billy Andrade (70), who collapsed in agony after his method on No. 17, but by some means nonetheless made par there. It was a becoming image, given all of the ache and confusion the closely tilted Broadmoor causes, particularly when it is arrange for major-championship situations.
“It is what you do on these final 4 or 5 holes which can be pretty powerful and ask some huge questions,” Bjorn stated. “I am fairly positive the pin place tomorrow goes to have extra questions for us. That is the place you win the golf match.”
Hensby’s worst style of the greens got here on 18. With the gallery nonetheless buzzing from Harrington’s hole-out, the Australian, whose 54th birthday is Sunday, left a 6-foot birdie for the solo lead brief. It curled exhausting to the proper with out reaching the outlet.
Even so, Hensby made 4 extra birdies (together with an eagle) to complete Day 3 with 19 for the match. Cink, by comparability, has 13. Hensby can take consolation that he, greater than anybody, has discovered easy methods to hit from lengthy vary on greens that Justin Leonard stated are “proper on par with making an attempt to putt at Augusta Nationwide.”
“You’ll be able to have a 5-footer that may break 2 ft,” Hensby stated. “Folks go, ‘Ahh,’ whenever you miss a 4-footer though you are aiming at a cup exterior left edge and hoping. Nevertheless it was enjoyable.”
No single putt illustrated this greater than Cink’s on the par-3 sixteenth. From simply off the inexperienced, his birdie try curled previous the outlet and a few 30 ft from the flag because the ever-present slope of Cheyenne Mountain took its toll.
Nonetheless, he wasn’t complaining after a four-birdie, two-bogey spherical on a day full of solar, clouds, wind, rain and even a flash of lightning that pulled the gamers off the course for a half-hour.
And the 6,000 ft of altitude.
“We hit some photographs on the market that we actually did not know what to anticipate when the ball was within the air,” Cink stated. “There was one the place on a par-3, on the twelfth gap, it was a 228-yard shot, and I hit an 8-iron. How do you work that sort of stuff?”
Cink and Hensby appeared like they’d end tied for the lead they’d shared with Harrington earlier than the Irishman began shedding momentum on the again 9.
The three-time main champion wanted two chips from the deep tough on the par-3 twelfth and made double bogey to fall out of the lead. One other bogey got here on 15 when he babied a 5-foot par putt and it curled away effectively earlier than the outlet.
“I actually misplaced a little bit of belief on the inexperienced,” Harrington stated.
He arrange the fabulous end by yanking his tee shot on 18 into the tough left of the green, giving him no alternative however to hack out over the lake and wanting the inexperienced.
However he turned a potential bogey into an unlikely birdie and assured himself a spot within the last group Sunday, the place he’ll play in the identical threesome (on account of climate) as he did Saturday. It additionally will mark his fourth straight day of going head-to-head with Cink.
“I did need to be within the final group, sure, and the one manner I might be within the final group was making that birdie,” Harrington stated. “However simply since you need one thing doesn’t suggest you possibly can. If it was as simple as that, we might be all nice.”
