Two of the young talents in professional golf are at it again.
This time, the PGA Championship is on the line.
Jason Day and Jordan Spieth distinguished themselves on Saturday at Whistling Straits and once again they will lock horns in an 18-hole showdown with other worthy contenders bearing down on them.
Day holed a clutch 15-footer for birdie at the 17th hole then parred 18 for a 66 to get to 15-under and that boosted him to a two-shot lead over Spieth, who tore up the back nine on his way to a 30 that featured birdies by the Masters and U.S. Open champ on the final three holes for a sizzling 65 that put him alone at 13-under.
If either Day or Spieth stumble on Sunday, there are plenty of challengers in the wings. Justin Rose closed with 68 and is tied at 12-under with Branden Grace, who shot the day’s low round, an eight-under par 64. It was Grace who pushed Spieth hard down the stretch at the U.S. Open until he hit a drive out-of-bounds at the 16th.
Martin Kaymer, who won the PGA at Whistling Straits in 2010, made a huge run up the leader board. He played with Grace and nearly equaled his 64 but finished with a 65 that put him alone at 11-under and in position to make a Sunday move.
Matt Jones and Tony Finau will start the day five back at 10-under. Jones led early in the third round, getting to 13-under par but he fell apart with a double and two bogeys over the last four holes. Same problem for Finau, who finished bogey-bogey.
But it is the Day-Spieth pairing that will draw the most attention.
“I gotta do the best I can to stay out of my own way,” Day said as he looked forward to the pairing with Spieth. “Be patient, let things happen.”
Day played fabulous golf for the most part. When he made the turn he went birdie-eagle then added two more birdies at 13 and 14 to get to 16-under and he looked like he was ready to stretch out a large lead. But a double-bogey at 14 then a bad-lie greenside at 15 produced a par on the easy birdie hole. But he got back some momentum with the nice birdie putt at 17.
Spieth was just the opposite. He birdied the first hole then reeled off eight straight pars and was falling farther behind the leaders. But he started his back nine run at 11 with three straight birdies then closed with three straight to shoot 30 coming home.
“I had those putts tail in at the end and gained momentum,” Spieth said of his finish. “Michael (his caddie) told me to stay stubborn. It felt really solid those last six holes. Hopefully it carries into tomorrow.”
Spieth is after an unprecedented third major this season and he could be the first player to win all three of the American majors in a single year.
Day has been pounding on the door at major championships and now, once again, he finds himself in position to win his first.
