It was an ugly Saturday on the Monterey Peninsula as wind and rain sent the pros and amateurs at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am seeking shelter from the elements.
Once again, Mother Nature took over and weather always wins. The third round was finished mid-afternoon on Sunday and the low 60 and ties went back out for the final round. When darkness set in, it was Justin Rose in the lead with nine holes left in the final round.
Rose, whose last PGA Tour win came four years ago at the Farmers Insurance Open, emerged as the 54-hole leader after a third round 65 got him to 12-under par.
He began his final round with a bogey at the first and surrendered the lead to Peter Malnati, who made an improbable birdie after nearly hitting his opening tee shot out-of-bounds. A sensational recovery shot left him just inside eight feet for birdie and he converted. A bogey by Rose, whose second finished over the green, dropped him a shot behind Malnati. Rose bounced back with a birdie at the second but took charge at the par five sixth thanks to an incredible second shot from the left fairway bunker from 214 yards out. Rose’s second stopped just outside eight feet from the hole and he converted then followed that up with an 18-foot birdie putt at the famous seventh to get to 15-under.
Rose parred eight and nine then hit the fairway with his tee shot at the 10th. The double horn blast sounded, giving players the option to finish the hole if they hit their tee shots before the horn. Rose chose not to hit his approach into 10 from 143 yards out with little daylight left. And that’s where he will begin when play resumes at 8 a.m. (Pacific time) on Monday morning.
Rose held a three-shot lead over Denny McCarthy, Brendon Todd and playing partner Mulnati. McCarthy surged up the leader-board with seven birdies over his first nine holes but was even par on the final nine through 15 holes. Tood was five-under for his round through 12 holes.
Brandon Wu and Keith Mitchell were both at 12-under through 10 holes, Beau Hossler was 12-under through 12 holes.
Chilly air is expected to greet the players when they resume the final round, with temperatures forecast in the low 40s.
Pebble Beach Pro-Am Scoreboard:
Pebble Beach Final Round Update: No problems whatsoever for Justin Rose — he was totally surgical over his final nine and finished 18-under, good for a three-shot margin of victory and his 11th PGA Tour win. He came out strong early and holed a 27-footer for birdie at 11 then one from 19 feet at the 13th. His third at the par five 14th stopped within eight feet of the hole and that birdie putt took him to 18-under. There would be no catching him. He parred in for 66. “An incredible week from start to finish,” Rose said and added that he was amazed how fast time has gone by since that last win four years ago. He now puts himself in prime position for a spot on the European Ryder Cup team. He’s back in The Masters and will have a spot in the PGA Championship.
Pro-Am Competition: Because of the weather circumstances, the pro-am portion was limited to 54-holes. Green Bay Packers quarterback (for now) Aaron Rogers won Sandbagger Of The Year Award as he and pro partner Ben Silverman finished 26-under par for three rounds. Silverman missed the 54-hole cut, shooting one-over par. Rogers helped his pro, well, 28 shots if you go by Silverman’s three-round total.
Houston Open Will Replace WGC Match Play:
This 2023 playing of the WGC Match Play in Austin, Texas, will mark the final year for the event. The spot on the 2024 PGA Tour schedule is expected to be taken by the Houston Open.
The Match Play was the last of the WGC events. They began in 1999 and featured limited, no-cut fields with larger money purses. They were considered the elite regular season events behind the four majors and the Players Championship.
Pierceson Coody Wins Panama Championship:
Seems a U.S. Open type of scoring battle broke out at the Panama Championship as former University of Texas star Pierceson Coody won his first Korn Ferry Tour event.
Coody entered the final round at the Panama Golf Club five shots behind overnight leader Christopher Petefish and rallied with a four-under par 66 to post three-under for the 72 holes.
Coody waited for more than two hours for the final groups to finish and after 72 holes, he was tied with Sam Saunders and Mac Meissner.
Coody made fast work of the playoff. After a huge drive, Coody’s lob wedge stopped a foot from the hole. He tapped in for birdie and the victory after the other two missed their birdie attempts.
Coody didn’t mind the long wait.
“It honestly wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” Coody said of the wait. “You’re refreshing the leaderboard, you’re putting, you’re hitting balls, but once it was time to get in the playoff, all that kind of anxious feel went away and I was just happy to be playing golf again, happy to be in contention.”
Panama Championship Scoreboard:
