Bob Estes avoids looking at leaderboards and doesn’t even like his caddie to tell him where he stands in a tournament until it’s absolutely necessary.
What Estes missed Saturday were two strong charges at his lead during the third round of the Greater Greensboro (N.C.) Chrysler Classic.
Scott Verplank and Skip Kendall shot the two lowest rounds of the day at Forest Oaks Country Club and were tied with Estes for the tournament lead at 12-under-par 204 heading into Sunday’s final round.
Estes, who started the day tied for the lead with Hal Sutton, started fast but settled for an even-par 72 Saturday. He birdied Nos. 3 and 4 but parred the next three holes before bogeys on 8 and 9. He had a birdie on 11 and a bogey on 15 before finishing with three pars.
Kendall vaulted into contention by shooting a 9-under 63 Saturday–one stroke off the course and tournament record. And Verplank, who has been plagued by elbow injuries since winning the 1985 Western Open as an amateur, shot a 66.
Verplank’s round took flight when he holed an 85-yard pitch for an eagle on the par-5 ninth hole.
“That kind of moved me from playing pretty good to the brink of something exceptional,” Verplank said. “That was the motor to my whole round.”
Verplank made a 10-foot birdie putt on 11 and parred the next five holes before making his only bogey at the par-3 17th. He got that stroke back by rolling in a 15-foot birdie putt on 18.
The 33-year-old Verplank wasn’t sure what to expect from himself Sunday. He said the elbow problems have taken as much of a mental toll as they have a physical one and he conceded he may not yet be ready to contend for a tournament title.
“All I can tell you was when I won the Western, I had a lot of confidence in my ability to win a golf tournament,” he said. “That is what I’m trying to build back to. If I play well, I am going to have a chance. I’m going to try to win but that is still a long way off. You keep getting hurt, you lose confidence.”
Ted Tryba shot his second straight 67 and was one off the lead at 11 under. Jerry Kelly fired a 68 and was tied with Sutton, also the first-round leader, at 10 under. Stephen Ames, Trevor Dodds, Neal Lancaster and defending champion Frank Nobilo were another shot behind the leaders.
LPGA Chick-Fil-A: Liselotte Neumann shot a 7-under-par 65 to build a three-stroke lead over Pat Hurst after two rounds at Stockbridge, Ga.
Neumann got the last of her nine birdies on the 18th hole to get to 12-under-par 132 while Hurst, the first-round leader, went out of bounds on the hole and took her second double-bogey of the round to finish with a 70 for 135. She also had a 5 on the par-3 eighth hole.
Neumann birdied No. 1 and, after a bogey on the par-5 third hole, birdied Nos. 4, 6 and 9 to turn at 33. Birdies at Nos. 11, 13 and 14 got her to 6 under. After a bogey at No. 15, she closed with birdies on the 16th and 18th holes.
Michelle Estill shot a 67 to join Hurst three shots back of the leader. Estill’s round included two near holes-in-one, when tee shots at Nos. 4 and 16 finished less than 2 inches from the cup.
Dottie Pepper, who won the inaugural Chick-Fil-A in 1992, shot 68 for 136, joined by Vickie Odegard, who shot 66 despite two bogeys.
Lorie Kane, whose 68 included an ace at the 146-yard fourth, was at 138 along with Nancy Ramsbottom, who went from one stroke back Thursday to five back Saturday after shooting a 72.
Las Vegas Senior: On a day when some of his fellow tour members looked like weekend hackers as they struggled to break 90, Hale Irwin shot a 2-under 70 to take a commanding six-shot lead going into the final round.
Irwin, the defending champion who is looking for his third win in seven events this year, overcame rain, cold and winds gusting to 40 m.p.h. to go 9 under for the tournament. It was the second big third-round lead in a row for Irwin, who won last week in the PGA Seniors Championship.
“Nobody’s going to catch him in this tournament,” said Jim Colbert, who shot a 78 to fall nine shots back. “No one will get to where he is unless the roof falls in.”
Dale Douglass and Jose Maria Canizares were a half-dozen shots back at 3 under and Vincente Fernandez and Jim Dent were two more shots behind.
Irwin and David Graham were the only players to break par, while Jerry McGee was the only player to manage an even par 72.
“It’s OK sometimes for the golf course to win,” Irwin said.
