Rounds 3 and 4: John Deere Classic

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Steve Stricker won his second win of the 2009 season at TPC Deere Run; earlier this year, he won the Crowne Plaza Invitational.
Lyons/Getty Images
Steve Stricker won his second win of the 2009 season at TPC Deere Run; earlier this year, he won the Crowne Plaza Invitational.
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John Deere Classic
PGATOUR.COM's The Live Report has all the news and notes from the John Deere Classic, and we'll be providing updates from TPC Deere Run all day long for each round, so check back often. (All timestamps are Eastern Time.)
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Jul. 12, 2009

STRICKER'S THE CHAMP (7:10 p.m.): Steve Stricker has sealed his second PGA TOUR win of the season, ending Sunday's long 36-hole day with a 7-under 64 for a final total of 20 under for a two-stroke victory.

Stricker, who tied the course record in the second round Saturday with a 10-under 61, now moves into second place in the FedExCup standings behind Tiger Woods.

Stricker will be a player to watch when the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup cranks up late next month. In the first two years of the Playoffs, he has finished in the top 20 in seven of the eight events, including a win at The Barclays in 2007.

Sunday's win is the seventh in Stricker's PGA TOUR career.

Stricker's TOUR wins
Year Tournament
1996 Kemper Open
1996 Motorola Western Open
2001 World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship
2007 The Barclays
2009 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial
2009 John Deere Classic

QUIGLEY GETS EXEMPTION (7:08 p.m.): With a double bogey on the final hole, Tim Petrovic lost his chance to claim the final spot in the British Open. Brett Quigley, as the leading player in the top five not already with an exemption, now gets the call for Turnberry.

Quigley tied for second with Zach Johnson and Brandt Snedeker, both of whom already have invites to the British Open.

PETROVIC FINDS THE WATER (7 p.m.): Tim Petrovic just found the water with his approach shot at the 18th green. Not only does that take him out of any chance to put pressure on Steve Stricker, it puts his British Open spot in jeopardy.

If Petrovic bogeys and ties Brett Quigley at 17 under, then Quigley gets the last invite to Turnberry, thanks to his better final round

STRICKER BY TWO (6:48 p.m.): Thanks to a terrific -- and certainly aggressive -- eagle putt that lipped out, Steve Stricker managed a tap-in birdie on the 17th. He now leads by two strokes going into the final hole after Tim Petrovic had to settle for par.

ADVANTAGE, STRICKER (6:43 p.m.): Steve Stricker has driven the par-5 17th in two, while Tim Petrovic had to lay up. Stricker, leading by a stroke, could ice the tournament on this hole.

TOUGH 17TH FOR JANZEN (6:28 p.m.): Lee Janzen came into the par-5 17th in a tie for ninth. But after a triple-bogey on one of the easiest holes on the course, Janzen left the green in a tie for 24th.

After finding a greenside bunker, Janzen tried to blast out but instead found the lip of the bunker, his ball buried underneath the turf. He got a free drop, but his next bunker shot sailed over the green into the collection area. He failed to pitch up on the green on his next shot. After finding the green with his sixth stroke, he then two-putted for his eight.

CLOSING STRETCH (6:14): Tournament leader Steve Stricker and his nearest chaser, Tim Petrovic, have reached the par-3 16th. Here is how the two players have performed this week in the first three rounds on the closing three holes.

Player 16th 17th 18th
Stricker par-par-par par-eagle-birdie par-birdie-bogey
Petrovic birdie-par-birdie birdie-birdie-birdie birdie-bogey-par

STREELMAN LEADS KODAK CHALLENGE (5:54 p.m.): Thanks to his eagle on the par-5 17th in Sunday morning's third round, Kevin Streelman is the leader in the Kodak Challenge standings.

kodak.gif

Streelman, who finished the John Deere Classic at 15 under, had an eagle and three pars at the 17th, this week's Kodak Challenge hole.

Streelman is now 10 under on the Kodak Challenge holes this season, one streak ahead of Chris DiMarco and Nathan Green.

Players must play 18 of the 30 Kodak Challenge holes to be eligible to win. Players will post their lowest score relative to par on 18 of the Kodak Challenge holes to compete for the Kodak Challenge title and $1 million.

To see the latest Kodak Challenge standings, click here.

PETROVIC HANGING TOUGH (5:35 p.m.): Back-to-back birdies has moved Tim Petrovic to 18 under. But his birdie on the 13th hole was matched by playing partner Steve Stricker, whose approach shot left him with just under three feet for birdie.

Stricker is now at 19 under and showing no signs of cracking. He has six birdies, one eagle and no bogeys in his last 22 holes.

ZACH IN AT 17 UNDER (5:16 p.m.): Zach Johnson has finished. Now he'll have to wait -- and it might be a long one -- before he finds out what his chances are to win the tournament.

Johnson posted a 5-under 66 to move him to 17 under, one stroke behind leader Steve Stricker. But Stricker, who's in the last group, still has seven holes to play. "I'm going to need some help," Johnson told CBS after his round.

Johnson started his final round on the 10th tee, so he finished on the ninth hole. Interesting note from the CBS telecast -- the last PGA TOUR winner to finish on the ninth hole was Keith Clearwater at Colonial in 1987.

Check out Johnson's final-round scorecard below. Click here for his ShotTracker card.

ZachSC4.jpg

STRICKER NOW TWO AHEAD (4:51 p.m.): Steve Stricker just rolled in a birdie putt of 15 feet, 9 inches on the par-5 10th to move to 18 under, two strokes ahead of the pack. Stricker is now 5 under on his round.

To follow the rest of Stricker's round, click here.

HOT ROUND (4:45 p.m.): George McNeill likely started the final round too far back to challenge for the lead, but he does have a shot at the course record of 61.

McNeill is currently 7 under on his round (14 under for the tournament) with five holes to play. He started his round on the 10th tee, so he's finishing on the tougher front side where he'll have to navigate the tough eighth and ninth holes. But the opportunity is there. Steve Stricker tied the course record on Saturday with a second-round 10-under 61.

To follow the rest of McNeill's round, click here.

QUIGLEY UPDATE (4:30 p.m.): Brett Quigley had plenty of momentum about an hour ago, but his bid for his first win in 353 PGA TOUR starts has been made tougher with two bogeys in a three-hole stretch.

As Quigley starts his final nine, he finds himself two shots off the lead. He still has time to make up ground, but since he started his final round on the 10th tee, he'll be finishing on the front nine, which is the tougher of the two nines at TPC Deere Run, with the eighth and ninth holes among the hardest on the course.

Of the top nine players on the leaderboard, only Quigley and Zach Johnson will finish their rounds on the front side.

ZACH AT HOME (4:20 p.m.); Zach Johnson obviously is the local favorite, having grown up in Iowa. But he hasn't experienced much success at his home tournament. Coming into this week, his best finish at the John Deere Classic is a tie for 20th in 2004.

But whether he wins this afternoon or not, Johnson appears to be on his way to his best finish in front of his hometown fans; he's currently one stroke behind Steve Stricker. Here's how Johnson has fared in his previous seven starts at this event.

Zach Johnson at the John Deere Classic
Year Finish Rnd 1 Rnd 2 Rnd 3 Rnd 4 Total To Par Winnings FedExCup Pts
2008 T69 69 68 75 71 283 -1 $8,484 50
2007 CUT 70 71     141      
2006 T33 64 72 70 69 275 -9 $21,133  
2005 T36 68 69 66 73 276 -8 $19,250  
2004 T20 70 69 65 70 274 -10 $44,270  
2003 CUT 70 77     147      
2002 CUT 74 72     146      

MULTIPLE CHAMPS (4 p.m.): Zach Johnson has already won twice on the PGA TOUR this season. Steve Stricker is looking for his second win 2009. Those two currently share the lead at the John Deere Classic.

Stricker is looking for his first double-win season on TOUR since he won the Kemper Open and Western Open in 1996.

Here are the multiple champions thus far in 2009.

Multiple champions in 2009
Wins Player Tournaments won
3 Tiger Woods Arnold Palmer Invt'l, the Memorial Tournament, AT&T National
2 Zach Johnson Sony Open in Hawaii, Valero Texas Open
2 Geoff Ogilvy Mercedes-Benz Champ., WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship
2 Brian Gay Verizon Heritage, St. Jude Classic
2 Kenny Perry FBR Open, Travelers Championship
2 Phil Mickelson Northern Trust Open, WGC-CA Championship

STRICKER, JOHNSON NOW CO-LEADERS (3:45 p.m.): Steve Stricker just holed out with a wedge shot from 98 yards for eagle at the par-4 sixth to move to 17 under. Seconds later, Zach Johnson birdied from 15 feet, 6 inches on the par-3 third to join Stricker atop the leaderboard.

BACK NINE (3:20 p.m.): The back nine continues to play easier than the front nine. In Sunday's third round, the back nine (which plays to a par 36) was about a half-stroke easier.

Here are the scoring averages for each of the first three rounds.

Scoring averages this week
Round Front 9 (par 35) Back 9 (par 36) Total
1 34.821 35.763 70.583
2 34.079 35.309 69.388
3 34.200 34.662 68.862

ANOTHER BIRDIE (3:10 p.m.): Brett Quigley just birdied the par-4 14th to move to 17 under. Quigley is now 13 under in his last 23 holes.

QUIGLEY STILL HOT (3 p.m.): Brett Quigley has followed his third-round 62 with three birdies in his first four holes in the final round. Quigley, who has never won a PGA TOUR event in 352 starts, now leads at 16 under.

Twenty-three players, however, are within six strokes of the lead.

MORE ON MATT JONES (2:40 p.m.) -- If Matt Jones can somehow escape this crowded leaderboard with the win on Sunday, it will cap a wild up-and-down year on the PGA TOUR.

jonesmug.jpg
Jones

Jones' rookie season in 2008 was unusual. The long-hitting Aussie made his first nine cuts -- he led The Honda Classic after two rounds -- but he struggled the rest of the year. In the end, he was 135th on the money list.

Jones started 2009 in the difficult 126-to-150 category. Basically, he is ensured of 15-20 PGA TOUR starts. He barely made the cut at the Buick Invitational in January, and he shot 64 on the final day to finish solo fifth. Since then, his best finish was a tie for 32nd at the Valero Texas Open.

There's no question Jones can play at a high level. If he can pull off the impossible on Sunday, he will lock up a two-year exemption, a spot in the British Open and a long look from Greg Norman for this fall's International Team in the Presidents Cup.

BRITISH OPEN SPOT AVAILABLE (2:25 p.m.): Just a reminder that the leading player, not otherwise exempt, who finishes among the top five and ties on Sunday will be exempt for next week's Open Championship.

Considering just 23 players in the John Deere Classic field currently have spots for Turnberry, it seems likely that one player will be added to the field. Of the top seven players on the leaderboard at the moment, only Steve Stricker has an invite.

Here is the list of 23 John Deere participants who are already exempt for the British Open.

Exempt for British Open
Briny Briny Mark Calcavecchia Chad Campbell James Driscoll
Ken Duke David Duval Lucas Glover Todd Hamilton
Charley Hoffman Charles Howell III Richard S. Johnson Zach Johnson
Matt Kuchar Tom Lehman Davis Love III Bryce Molder
Kenny Perry Carl Pettersson Brandt Snedeker Steve Stricker
Kevin Sutherland David Toms D.J. Trahan

HENRY MOVES UP (2:10 p.m.): J.J. Henry has one PGA TOUR win to his credit, the 2006 Buick Championship, and he's playing the final round Sunday in position to notch win No. 2.

After shooting a third-round, 5-under 66 and then birdieing his first hole in the final round, Henry is now tied for the lead at 14 under.

Henry finished second earlier this year at the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun.

THIRD ROUND COMPLETED (2:03): The final group of Darron Stiles, Tim Petrovic and Steve Stricker have completed their first 18 holes Sunday and will soon tee off for their fourth rounds.

For the record, the co-leaders after 54 holes are Stiles, Petrovic and Matt Jones at 14 under.

Of those three, only Jones has previously held or shared a 54-hole lead in a PGA TOUR event (the 2008 Honda Classic; Jones eventually finished T4).

QUIGLEY SHOOTS 62 (1:45): After making the cut on the number, Brett Quigley just posted the second lowest round of the week, a 9-under 62 in the third round that leaves him tied for the lead at 13 under. Steve Stricker shot a course-record 61 in Saturday's second round.

Brett Quigley
Quigley

Quigley's round included eight birdies, one eagle and a bogey. The 62 ties for the lowest round of his career; Quigley shot a 62 in the 2001 B.C. Open.

Quigley has started 352 PGA TOUR events without a victory. Perhaps the unusual 36-hole finish will produce the 19th first-time winner in John Deere Classic history.

But to do so, he'll have to endure the quick turnaround that all players are enduring Sunday. Quigley finished his round at 1:42 p.m. ET and was scheduled to start his fourth round nine minutes later at 1:51 p.m.

Here's a look at Quigley's scorecard. For more on Quigley's third round, click here for his ShotTracker card.

QuigleySC.jpg

EIGHT TIED FOR LEAD (1:40 p.m.): It's going to be one wild fourth round. Eight players currently are tied for the lead, and 13 others are within three shots of the lead. Some players, such as 36-hole leader Darron Stiles, have yet to finish their third rounds, while others, such as Zach Johnson and Matt Jones, are already well into their fourth rounds.

JONES LIKES HIS GROUP (1:25 p.m.): One of the factors stemming from the lack of re-pairing between rounds Sunday is that players will be spending all 36 holes with the same two players.

Matt Jones doesn't mind that at all, especially since he's paired with one of his good friends on the PGA TOUR, Charley Hoffman. (The third member of that group is Heath Slocum).

"Hoffman's one of those guys who likes to have fun out on the course," Jones told the PGA TOUR Network. "So it was good."

And with Jones shooting an 8-under 63 and Hoffman shooting 66 in Sunday morning's third round, both players putting themselves in excellent position going into the final round, there was only one thing left to do.

"Now we gotta go do it again," Jones said.

To follow the Jones-Hoffman-Slocum group on ShotTracker, click here.

PERRY TOO FAR BACK (1:14 p.m.): Defending champion Kenny Perry posted a third-round 1-over 72. With many other players going low during "moving morning," Perry has dropped well off the pace and won't be able to make up enough ground to win his second straight John Deere Classic title.

SUB-70 ZACH (12:55 p.m.): As Zach Johnson begins his final round Sunday, he'll look to complete his fourth tournament this season in which he has posted all four rounds in the 60s.

In fact, Johnson has posted seven consecutive rounds in the 60s in his last two starts.

Here's a look at those tournaments this year in which Johnson posted all four rounds in the 60s and his finish in each one:

Tournament Rounds Score Eventual finish
Sony Open in Hawaii 69-65-66-65 15 under Won
Crowne Plaza Invitational 69-67-64-69 11 under T9
Travelers Championship 67-68-66-67 12 under 18th

Johnson told the PGA TOUR Network in between rounds that his 7-under 64 that he posted Sunday morning was "one of those days that I got off to a good start and putted well."

Should Johnson win or finish in solo second place, he would move to the top of the FedExCup standings. He currently is in third place, 389 points behind leader Tiger Woods. For complete FedExCup standings, click here.

FOURTH ROUND BEGINS (12:30 p.m.): Although the third round has yet to be completed, the fourth round has officially started, with the first groups going off the first and 10th tees.

Co-leader Matt Jones (14 under) tees off at 12:48 p.m. ET off the first tee, with Zach Johnson and Cameron Beckman, both at 12 under after shooting 7-under 64s Sunday morning, tee off at the same time off the 10th tee.

For complete fourth-round tee times, click here.

JONES IN WITH 63 (12:22 p.m.): Matt Jones has made the biggest move Sunday morning with an 8-under 63 in the third round that gives him the clubhouse lead at 14 under. Darron Stiles, the 36-hole leader, also is at 14 under as he plays the back nine.

Jones' 63 ties for his lowest round on the PGA TOUR; he also shot a 63 in the second round of last year's Buick Open.

Jones is looking for his first TOUR win. His best finish came last year when he tied for fourth at the Honda Classic and the Buick Open. He tied for fifth earlier this year at the Buick Invitational.

Here's a look at Jones' scorecard. For more on Jones' round, check out his ShotTracker card.

JonesSC.jpg

NOON REPORT (12 p.m.): With the final group having made the turn in the third round, the hottest players on the course right now are Matt Jones and Zach Johnson, who are both 7 under on their rounds and are breathing down the neck of second-round leader Darron Stiles..

Stiles is 1 under through 10 holes and is now at 14 under, one stroke ahead of Jones and two ahead of Johnson.

36-HOLE SUNDAY (11:55 a.m.): Just a reminder that Sunday's action will include 36 holes as tournament officials hope to complete the event toda by going out in threesomes off both the first and 10th tees.

In addition, the threesomes will not be re-paired between the third and fourth rounds.


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