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Tiger Woods falls, Tony Finau surges, and other things you missed from Round 3 of the Hero

Pat RalphBy Pat Ralph
December 1, 2018
Tiger Woods shot even par during Saturday's third round, but it landed him in dead last.
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The third round of the Hero World Challenge at Albany Golf Club in the Bahamas was another one filled with plenty of birdies, as 17 of the 18 golfers in the field shot even par or better on Saturday. The best scores of the day belonged to Xander Schauffele and Patrick Reed, who both shot a 6-under 66.

Here’s what you need to know from Round 3 of the Hero World Challenge.

Tiger falls to last place

Tiger Woods shot an even par on Saturday to remain at 2-under for the entire tournament. But the strong play and movement up the leaderboard for others put Tiger all alone in last place heading into Sunday’s final round. Fortunately for Tiger, his third round was not overshadowed by rules violations like his second round was on Friday.

He racked up five birdies on the day, four of which came on par-5 holes. His fifth and final birdie was registered on the par-3 18th, a hole which brought bad omens to Tiger on Friday. Unlike his second round when his only bogey of the day didn’t come until the final hole, Tiger carded four bogeys on Saturday.

Most notably, Tiger double bogeyed on the par-5 third hole. As a result, he found himself playing from behind trying to return to under par the entire round. Once again, Tiger’s struggles could be pointed to none other than his short game. Woods remains 11 shots back of the leaders heading into Sunday’s final round. Based on how many strokes back he is and how inconsistent his putting has been so far, a Sunday afternoon charge from Tiger at his own event seems unlikely at this point.

Finau surges to the front

Speaking of leaders, Tony Finau found himself at the top of the leaderboard after the third round. He’s now tied at 13-under overall alongside Jon Rahm and Henrik Stenson. Finau entered the day at 8-under overall and just two shots off the lead, but his 5-under 67 performance on Saturday has him in the lead after 54 holes.

After settling for bogey at the par-3 second tee, Finau would not finish a hole over par for the rest of the day. Finau posted six birdies in the round, including four on the front nine. He would then register back-to-back birdies at 14 and 15.

Rahm and Stenson both entered Saturday as co-leaders after 36 holes and shot 3-under 69 to remain in the lead heading into Sunday. Each had five birdies and two bogeys on the day. With three tied for the lead heading into the final round, golf fans are in for a great finish on Sunday at Albany.

Honoring the President

On Friday night, Former President George H.W. Bush passed away at age 94 at his home in Houston. In his free time, Bush 41 enjoyed both playing golf and attending events such as the Ryder Cup and Presidents to hang out with the pros. Not surprisingly, many golfers chose to honor the late president during Saturday’s third round.

Guys such as Finau, Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler, and Bryson DeChambeau all wrote “41” on their hats. Classy move by some of the best in the sport.

A wild finish for Noren

Alex Noren finds himself at 8-under through 54 holes and only five shots off the lead. He shot 2-under for the round on Saturday. But it was his finish that can only be described as crazy.

After 14 holes, Noren had racked up two birdies and two bogeys on the day. He earned himself an eagle at the par-5 15th, yet only to have it be forgotten about by a triple bogey at the 16th hole. But wait, there’s more. His fortunes then return from bad to good at the 17th tee when he nails a hole in one. He then finished the day with a birdie on 18. Needless to say, Noren had a roller-coaster finish to his third round on Saturday.