SAN DIEGO (AP) — Justin Rose delivered a performance Saturday at Torrey Pines that Tiger Woods could appreciate, stretching his lead to as many as eight shots until a few late mistakes led to a 4-under 68 for a five-stroke lead in the Farmers Insurance Open.
Rose, who won at Torrey in 2019, started the third round with a four-shot lead and quickly pulled away with a brilliant stretch of three holes on the front nine of the South course.
He hit pitching wedge to a back pin on the par-5 fifth hole to 6 feet. He blistered a 5-wood from 252 yards to about 30 feet pin-high on the par-5 sixth for a two-putt birdie. And then he took on another tight flag over the bunker on No. 7 to 5 feet.
Rose hit a few loose swings early on the back to give Seamus Power and Joel Dahmen some hope. Coming off two straight bogeys, he pulled his 3-woods on the par-5 13th into the rough well below the green. Able to see only the top of the flag, he pitched it out and it rolled with proper pace to tap-in range for birdie.
Rose was at 21-under 195. It was the second-largest 54-hole lead at the tournament behind the eight-shot lead Woods had in 2008. Woods practically owned the public course along the Pacific Bluff with eight professional wins, including the U.S. Open.
Power was doing his best to stay in range until three straight bogeys took him well out of contention. Dahmen finished strong for a 68 and was in second place, even if it feels as though he is leading the B-flight.
But it’s a big lead for Dahmen, who finished outside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup in the year they reduced full cards from the top 125. He has conditional status and only got into the Farmers Insurance Open because of two courses allowing for a larger field.
He also has received a sponsor exemption into the WM Phoenix Open next week, so it’s a good time to help turn his fortunes. A strong Sunday would do wonders.
Rose, meanwhile, continues to enjoy what he once called his “Indian summer.” At age 45, he was the oldest player by seven years on Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team. Even if asked — if Luke Donald declines a third captaincy — Rose said last week his focus would be on playing in the 2027 Ryder Cup.
A victory would move him to as high as No. 4 in the world ranking. No one has lost a lead larger than five shots at Torrey Pines, though Rose was once the beneficiary of a stunning collapse by Dustin Johnson in Shanghai. His work is not done.
Brooks Koepka, in his return to the PGA Tour from Saudi-funded LIV Golf, played a solid round except for the short putts. He turned a 3-foot par putt into a double bogey on the par-3 11th, and had a 3-foot birdie putt into a bogey on the par-5 ninth, his final hole that led to a 73.
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Doug Ferguson, The Associated Press
