One streak ended for Jerry Kelly on Saturday, but another remained intact.
The 51-year-old from Madison, Wis., saw his impressive run of subpar rounds on PGA Tour Champions snapped at 16 as he shot a 1-over-par 71 at The Broadmoor’s East Course.
Nevertheless, Kelly (left in a USGA photo) finished his third straight day of the U.S. Senior Open with the outright lead.
One more and he’ll be hoisting the trophy on Sunday.
Kelly, a three-time winner on PGA Tour Champions and that circuit’s money leader in 2018, gave back three strokes on the first three holes of the back nine Saturday but steadied the ship to finish with six consecutive pars. He stands at 4-under 206 through 54 holes.
Kelly led by three strokes midway through his round, but a bogey on No. 10 and a double bogey at No. 12 — where he three-putted from 2 1/2 feet — cost him significantly.
“That one sticks in your craw a little bit,” he said, later adding, “I’m very disappointed. I could have put some distance (between himself and the next-best player), no question.
“I’m a jumpy putter. I’m a very good putter, but those types of things happen to me. I understood what I did. Pick the putter up, bang it down on the ball and it squirts in a different direction. So I know it and then I could just move on after that. Now, did it unnerve me a little bit? Yeah, absolutely. So hanging in there after that, that next up-and-down was fantastic.”
Kelly will take a one-stroke lead into Sunday’s final round. Closest on his heels is David Toms, winner of the 2001 PGA Championship and the 1999 International at Castle Pines, who matched the best round of the day with a bogey-free 4-under-par 66. Sharing third place are Kirk Triplett, who lost in a playoff at this event last year, and Tim Petrovic, who was a college teammate of Kelly at the University of Hartford.
Kelly entered the media center during Petrovic’s interview on Saturday, and requested that the latter sing the University of Hartford fight song.
“Well, since the University fo Hartford does not have a football team, I don’t think we have a fight song,” Petrovic said. “Do you know the fight song? Did you have go Hartford by the way?
Said Kelly: “I went to the school. I just didn’t go to class.”
And so it went.
That wasn’t the only amusing/odd moment of the day for Petrovic. On the 17th hole, he flared his tee shot to the right, with the ball running down the cart path. Once it finished up in the rough, a youngster slid in on the grass and picked up the ball. Petrovic was later given a free drop and made bogey on the hole, part of a stretch in which he went 3 over par in his final four holes en route to a 71.
“I just found out that (the boy) actually slid like he was sliding into second base, trying to fight his brother for the golf ball and actually picked it up,” Petrovic said. “And then when I got to the ball, it looked like he was about to lose it; he was really upset. I just made a comment, ‘Hey, next time you do that, why don’t you just kick it back toward the fairway instead?’ And he thought that was pretty funny, so that kind of put the fire out. … I just wanted to make him feel like it’s not the end of the world. It’s only a major, no big deal (laugh).”
Three other players round out the seven golfers who are under par, sharing fifth place at 209. That includes Colorado Golf Hall of Famer Brandt Jobe (See Related Story), who fired a 66 on Saturday; Miguel Angel Jimenez (73) and Paul Goydos (66).
Also still within striking distance are World Golf Hall of Famers Davis Love III (210) and Colin Montgomerie (211).
“I think there’s so many people that will have a chance tomorrow,” said Toms (left in a USGA photo). “I look forward to it.”
Added Petrovic: “It’s going to be fun tomorrow. It’s going to be a little dogfight.”
Elway Duly Impressed By Performances at Broadmoor: FS1, which is televising the Senior Open, had the tournament’s honorary chairman — and Pro Football Hall of Famer — John Elway on the air during Saturday’s telecast.
Elway, of course, tried to qualify at The Broadmoor for the Senior Open. He came up short, shooting an 80, finishing in 18th place out of a field that originally numbered 84.
“It was tough,” the former Broncos quarterback said. “I will tell you this: If I had to play golf in those conditions every day, I probably wouldn’t play golf, that’s how hard it is. That’s why you look at what these guys are doing and how impressive it is and the way that they play. So it’s fun to watch them play … You don’t appreciate it on TV nearly as much as when you get a chance to see them swing.”
Langer Thinks He’s Too Far Back: Bernhard Langer, who owns more senior major titles than anyone (10), shot a 4-under-par 66 on Saturday, but at 4-over-par 214 and eight out of the lead he doesn’t feel he has a realistic shot at the title on Sunday.
“Every place forward is better,” the 60-year-old said. “Gets more money, more Schwab Cup points, but I don’t think I’m going to have a chance to win.”
On Friday, Langer had an unusual experience of losing his ball in standard rough of an area populated by spectators. That was on his first shot of the day, which went left on the par-4 first. “There were hundreds of people around. Nobody saw it,” said Langer, who posted a double bogey on the hole. “Pretty weird.”
Notable: Jeff Wilson of Fairfield, Calif., the low amateur in the U.S. Open in 2000, is going for the career Open/Senior Open low-am sweep, trying to become the second to manage the feat, joining Vinny Giles. Wilson shot an even-par 70 on Saturday to check in at 7-over 217, one better than fellow am Mike Finster. “If I was to be the low amateur, that would be awesome,” Wilson said. … Tee times for Sunday’s final round will start at 9:41 a.m., with the top two players after three rounds — Jerry Kelly and David Toms — going off at 2:45 p.m.
For scores from the U.S. Senior Open, CLICK HERE.
For Sunday’s pairings at The Broadmoor, CLICK HERE.
