DETROIT — Adam Hadwin, Taylor Pendrith and the rest of the Rocket Mortgage Classic team made sure everyone knew that Saturday was Canada Day. Rickie fowler, a fan favorite, still took the lead after the third round with a score of 20-under.
Hadwin and Pendrith were on top of the leaderboard in the late hours of Saturday, just a few miles from their native countries. Pendrith showed his pride by wearing a red-and-white shirt. After the third round of the Detroit Golf Club which was delayed by 1 hour, 42 minutes due to bad weather, they finished in second and third place, respectively.
Hadwin began his day at the back of the group, but he broke away after the second nine. His big break on the 14th came when he made an eagle. He is now 19 under par for the tournament. Hadwin’s first shot was about half way down the fairway, and his second shot helped him find the green. He shot 4 under par on four of the five par 5s he played Saturday. This helped him to move up the leaderboard. He tied a course-record with a score of 9-under on his final day.
Hadwin added, “It is a fun leaderboard with Taylor and me at the top of it on Canada Day.” “Hopefully, yes, tomorrow’s goal is to keep doing what I have been doing, and try to hit golf shots while having as much fun. “I haven’t done this in a long time, and especially alone.”
Hadwin was the first to finish his round, while Pendrith, Fowler, and both were tied for second place, one shot behind, after 16 holes.
Fowler was 15 inches away from an eagle after he birdied the par-5 hole on the 17th. Pendrith, however, refused to give up his position and responded with his own birdie to create a tie.
The 18th hole would decide the winner. Fowler’s shot from his second shot was only three feet away from the hole. He made another birdie with his putt, making it his ninth on the day and sixth in the back nine. This gave him sole possession of the leader.
Pendrith still had one hole to play.
He wasn’t in the same position off the tee as Fowler and had to cover more ground on his second shot, which resulted in a birdie putt of 16 feet. Pendrith failed to convert and bogeyed that hole, which dropped him to third.
Last year, Tony Finau won the tournament with a score of 26-under 262, setting a record for four round.
Even though the top three places are already set, many competitors are eager to surpass them on the final day of the tournament.
Aaron Rai and Peter Kuest, who led the Round 1 standings on Thursday, are both tied for fourth. Both players finished the tournament at 17 under par on Saturday. Kuest birdied the 15th and 14th holes while Rai birdied them both, keeping both players in contention.
Collin Morikawa, who finished Saturday with 5 under par, is now tied for 6th place along with Carl Yuan (who also shot 5 under), Dylan Wu, Justin Lower, and the co-leader from Friday, Taylor Moore. Morikawa failed to move forward on the back nine. He made par on eight out of his nine last holes. His eagle on the front and his two birdies allowed him to play for the trophy.
Play will start earlier than initially scheduled. Due to the forecasted bad weather that is expected to hit Detroit, Sunday’s tee time has been pushed up to 6:45-8.55 a.m. The threesomes will start on split tees. This means that the final group is Fowler Hadwin Pendrith.
