ORLANDO, Fla. — Collin Morikawa made a 12-foot birdie putt on the 18th gap Saturday on a baked-out Bay Hill course for a 5-under 67, giving him a one-shot lead within the Arnold Palmer Invitational and an opportunity to win for the primary time in 17 months.
Russell Henley holed an extended bunker shot for birdie on the opening gap, ran off 4 in a row to start out the again 9 and had a 67 to complete one shot behind. Corey Conners of Canada missed the 18th fairway, chipped out and made bogey for a 69 and was two again.
Even with out a lot wind and occasional cloud cowl, the warmth and three days of solar introduced a yellow shine to fairways and greens. Birdie putts from an inexpensive vary rolled out previous the opening typically 8 toes or extra away.
Shane Lowry, the 36-hole chief, received a style of that on his last gap. His tee shot on the 18th ran thus far that solely the collar of the tough stored it from rolling out into the water. He had a birdie probability simply inside 25 toes and watched that roll 7 toes by the opening.
He managed to gap that for a 76, leaving him six photographs behind. Rory McIlroy made bogey on three of his final 4 holes for a 73 to fall seven photographs behind.
Scottie Scheffler tried to remain in vary, besides that birdies have been exhausting to return by. He got here up quick on the thirteenth — a entrance pin and a crispy inexperienced — and went into the rocks. He managed to salvage bogey from that, however he might solely handle a 71 to fall eight photographs again.
Morikawa was at 10-under 206.
“It’s important to hit good photographs on the market,” he mentioned. “It might probably get you from any route.”
The ultimate hour had Morikawa, Henley and Conners buying and selling spots or sharing time on the prime. Morikawa was the one one to keep away from a bogey over the ultimate four-hole stretch. He laid up on the par-5 sixteenth and hit lob wedge and let a 6-foot birdie trickle and swirl into the cup.
He barely touched his 12-foot birdie putt on the ultimate gap.
Each shot — attempting to maintain it within the fairway, on the inexperienced and placing — required respect.
“A few of these pin areas, I really feel I am having to putt very defensively,” Henley mentioned.
Jason Day, who opened with a 76, put himself again within the combine with a tournament-low 64 on Friday and a wild spherical of 69 on Saturday. He was briefly tied for the lead till closing out the entrance 9 with three straight bogeys. He was shedding floor till making three straight birdies on the finish, together with a 20-footer on the seventeenth.
His measure of how agency it was from ready his flip to putt.
“Any time you place your putter down and also you begin sliding in your putter, that is when you recognize the greens are getting fairly slick,” Day mentioned. “They’re altering coloration and you’ll form of begin to see the change in coloration.”
Michael Kim had two eagles on the again 9 for a 67, becoming a member of Tony Finau (68) at 5-under 205. Kim is the one participant among the many prime 5 going into the ultimate spherical who just isn’t already exempt for the Masters, and a win would deal with that.
Morikawa is a two-time main champion whose final victory was in October 2023 on the Zozo Championship in Japan. He received again with longtime coach Rick Sessinghaus, and that buttery fade that offers him such nice management has been giving him extra possibilities.
Golf Channel reminded him it had been 502 days.
“Thanks for placing that in actual days. I hope you’ve it in hours and minutes,” he mentioned.
The one quantity that issues is eighteen holes and plenty of stress alongside the way in which.
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