If Saturday was any indication, Sunday is going to be a heckuva finale in Las Vegas.
Moving day lived up to its mantra on Saturday at TPC Summerlin in the 2022 Shriners Children’s Open. There was a course record-tying round. There were numerous birdies and hardly any bogeys. Past champions are in the mix, and a young star is looking for yet another statement early in his career.
There’s plenty of golf left to be played, and with how many birdies and scoring chances there are in Vegas, there’s no telling who can come out on top Sunday evening. Yet the pair at the top could be a thrilling show themselves.
Here’s what you missed on moving day from Sin City.
Get him some Patty Ice, he's on a heater
It should be no surprise to see Patrick Cantlay at the top of the leaderboard. I mean, he has won at TPC Summerlin before.
Cantlay won the Shriners Open in 2017, and he’s in position to win again. He birdied his first four holes – and five of his first six – eventually shooting 29 on the front.
He did just as good on the back nine, carding five birdies and coming in at 11-under 60 for the day, tying his career low round and moving into the lead with 18 holes to go. He tied the course record, as well.
When in Vegas, many people look for their lucky number. For Cantlay, that could No. 9, as in his ninth PGA Tour victory. He’s tied for the lead at 19 under heading to Sunday.
“I was really happy with today,” Cantlay said. “I played great. Had a bunch of looks and made most of them. Took advantage of the par-5s and the drivable 4, and that’s what you have to do around this place.”
Cantlay said he had never shot 59 before and he was really hoping to sink his birdie putt on 18, which slid just past the hole.
He won the BMW Championship in August, defending his title, in the penultimate event of the 2021-22 season. He then performed well in the Presidents Cup, going 3-1-0.
Now, he’s searching for his second Tour win in three starts.
“No lead is safe around here because you can go so low and make so many birdies,” Cantlay said. “I’ll hit a bunch of drivers and hopefully have a bunch of looks.”
Tom Kim is here to stay
Tom Kim put himself on the map in August when he won the Wyndham Championship. In September at the Presidents Cup, he proved he was an emerging star.
In Las Vegas, Kim has proved he’s one of the best players in the world, and he has positioned himself for yet another win. Not bad for a 20-year-old.
Not to be out-shadowed by Cantlay’s incredible performance, Kim kept pace at TPC Summerlin. He shot 9-under 62 and is tied with Cantlay heading to Sunday. A day after struggling on the greens and not gaining any momentum, he carded nine birdies, including five in six holes on the back nine, to earn himself a tee time in the final pairing on Sunday.
“I took care of what I really needed to take care of on this golf course and just needing a good round to give myself a chance on Sunday really because I’m really happy with myself just keeping it tight,” Kim said.
With a win Sunday at the Shriners Children’s Open, 20-year-old Tom Kim would become the first player since Tiger Woods in 1996 to win twice on the PGA TOUR before turning 21 years old.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) October 9, 2022
Kim is the only player in the field who hasn’t recorded a bogey this week. On the 18th hole, he stuffed his iron shot to a couple feet to tie Cantlay, setting up a great matchup heading into the final round.
And how would Kim feel if he had a putt to win it on the 18th come Sunday?
“I would love it, yeah. It would be great.”
Mito Pereira, a fellow International team Presidents Cupper, is at 16 under. He led after the second round and went 4 under on Saturday.
Aaron Rai goes low
Aaron Rai arrived at TPC Summerlin on Saturday seven shots behind the leader with an early-morning tee time.
He walked off the course with the round of the day (at the time) and the clubhouse lead.
Rai had nine birdies during a career-low 9-under 62 to move to 14 under for the tournament and two shots clear of the field when he walked off the course. Rai, 27, recorded five birdies in his first nine holes and then four straight on Nos. 14-17.
Going low on Saturday 👀
Aaron Rai is 9-under thru 17 @ShrinersOpen. pic.twitter.com/Ri65aHv9Ii
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 8, 2022
He hasn’t recorded a win during his PGA Tour career, but he put himself in a position to have a chance come Sunday.
“Hit a lot of good iron shots and rolled it very well overall,” Rai said. “Yeah, everything kind of fired well today. I gave myself probably more opportunities than I did over the first two days. It was nice to see the round come together.”
Defending champ back in the mix
Sungjae Im has also had plenty of success at TPC Summerlin. He is the defending champion.
His experience in Vegas showed Saturday, as he carded an 8-under 63 to move to 15 under for the tournament. He shot 65 on Thursday and followed that up with a 70 in the second round.
If Im was anything Saturday, he was consistent. He had no bogeys and recorded four birdies on each nine.
“I know it’s really difficult to win back-to-back, but I’ve got one more day,” Im said.
It looks the same on the card
Jim Herman made birdie on the par-5 16th hole during his third round when he carded an even-par 71, but he took only three shots on the hole.
Herman’s second shot came up short of the green in the water, so he placed his ball in the drop zone 108 yards to the cup. Must’ve been a good number for Herman, who proceeded to spin the ball into the cup for a birdie.
An unlikely birdie from @GoHermie 😲 pic.twitter.com/JZvw3D00SU
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 8, 2022
After playing his previous two holes in 3 over, the unique birdie helped stop the bleeding.
