TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) — Mac Meissner held onto the lead Saturday in the Barracuda Championship, following a late par save with a tap-in birdie in the only PGA Tour event that uses the modified Stableford scoring system.
Meissner had a one-point lead over Vince Whaley, reaching 39 points with 13 in the round delayed about 1 1/2 hours in the afternoon because of lightning.
Chad Ramey, tied for sixth with 33, was the only PGA Tour winner in the top eight after three rounds on Tahoe Mountain Club’s Old Greenwood course.
“By the time I tee off tomorrow I’ll probably won’t be in the lead," Meissner said. "So, that will be nice. I’ll be able to still feel like I can chase, because it’s always easier to win a golf tournament when you’re coming from behind.”
Players receive eight points for a double eagle, five for eagle and two for birdie. A point is deducted for bogey and three for double bogey.
Meissner got up-and-down from 230 yards for par on the par-5 15th, making a 20-footer. He drove into trouble left and took two shots to get to the fairway.
Making his 23rd PGA Tour start, Meissner then hit to two feet on the 196-yard 16th to set up a birdie, but missed a five-foot birdie try on 17 and also parred 18.
“Sometimes, you’re going to hit good putts and they’re not going to go in, like it did on 17,” Meissner said. “So, just trying to be as confident over the ball as possible and trying to have as good speed and if it matches and goes in, then all the better.”
The 25-year-old former SMU player eagled the par-5 third, making a six-footer.
Whaley had a 16-point round. He rebounded from a bogey on the second with an eagle on the third and had six birdies, the last on the par-4 18th.
“Eagles are nice out here,” Whaley said. “Just hit an 8-iron in there and made a little 20-footer up the hill. That definitely got the round going.”
Rico Hoey, coming off a playoff loss last week in Kentucky in the ISCO Championship, was third at 36 after a 15-point afternoon.
Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., slipped to 20th with 28 points, while Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., is tied for 32nd with 25 points.
“I’ve gotten a lot of confidence out of that week,” Hoey said. “I just felt, like everyone says, like, you know, I belong out here. I feel like I belong out here and I’m putting myself in those positions, and whether I get it done tomorrow or not, I’m just going to keep fighting and keep breaking down those walls.”
Patrick Fishburn and Max Greyserman had 34 points, and Ramey was a point back along with Marcus Armitage and Casey Jarvis
With three weeks left in the FedEx Cup regular season, Meissner is 103rd, Whaley 167th and Hoey 111th. The top 70 will advance to the playoffs.
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The Associated Press
