Tough weather conditions turn fate of LIV Golf players on Saturday at The Open
TROON, Scotland – Jon Rahm checked the weather forecast and saw it was going to rain during Saturday’s third round of The Open. He figured there would be some wind, too. After all, it’s a links course in Scotland.
But he didn’t expect this much wind.
“Man, did it turn quickly,” the Legion XIII captain said.
The fates of many players, among them the LIV Golf players in contention entering the weekend at Royal Troon, also turned quickly.
Consider Dean Burmester, who was tied for fourth at 2 under to start the day. Paired with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, the Stinger GC star was even par on his round through 13 holes before ending with three bogeys and a double to shoot 76. That leaves him tied for 25th at 3 over.
“I hung tough until that rough stretch,” Burmester said. “A couple bad decisions, a couple of short putts missed, and Bob's your uncle, 5-over.”
Or consider Joaquin Niemann, who on Friday heroically fought back from a quintuple-bogey at the Postage Stamp par-3 8th to keep himself in contention at even par. On Saturday, the Torque GC captain suffered another quintuple-bogey, this time at the par-4 11th after his tee ball went out of bounds.
There was no fighting back in the poor weather conditions. Like Burmester, he carded a 76 and is tied for 40th at 5 over.
Or consider five-time major winner Brooks Koepka, who entered the round at 1 over with hopes of making a typical Brooksian major move up the leaderboard. But the Smash GC captain suffered an early double, never got untracked and bogeyed five holes on the back nine en route to a 78.
His playing partner, Dustin Johnson, never got untracked either. He opened with 13 consecutive pars until rolling in a 51-foot birdie putt at the par-3 14th; it was the only birdie in the group on Saturday.
Unfortunately, the 4Aces GC captain gave it back with a double on the 17th to shoot 72. He’s 2 over and tied for 15th, six shots off the lead.
“I felt like I played really, really good golf, and I shot 1-over,” Johnson said. “The back nine, that's the hardest nine holes I think you could ever play in golf right now, into the wind and rain.”
Rahm figured he had a small window on his front nine that offered more palatable weather, but he did not take advantage of it. He bogeyed the second hole, bounced back with a birdie at the third – and then finished with 14 pars and one bogey. He’s also at 2 over.
“With the little bit of rain we had and no rain the first few holes, I've got to play the first seven holes under par,” Rahm said. “That's where I'm losing my strokes.
“I believe from 9 on I probably gained the most in the field, but I had to make some birdies early on. That bogey on 2 with the 9-iron with the most perfect conditions I can imagine and not birdieing 4 is just giving away a little bit.”
One of the players who teed off earlier in the day and had a better window of scoreable conditions was LIV Golf reserve player John Catlin. He birdied four of his first seven holes and shot a 69 and is tied with Rahm and Johnson for 15th.
“My timing’s pretty good,” said Catlin.
The 2013 Open winner Phil Mickelson also teed off early and shot a 72 that was highlighted by three birdies in his last four holes – a rarity on Saturday. He’s at 6 over and tied for 51st.
“I enjoyed the round. I had fun,” said Mickelson, part of the epic weekend duel with 2016 winner Henrik Stenson at Royal Troon. “I didn't score the way I wanted to, but I always enjoy playing here.”
It’s doubtful many players with later tee times agreed with him.
The weather forecast for Sunday’s final round offers a bit of relief for the players, with just a slight chance of light showers. Gusts up to 22 mph will still make things interesting – and perhaps will provide hope for the chasers who have significant ground to make up.
“Got to go out and do something pretty special to even be in the conversation,” Catlin said.
“We've seen crazier things,” added Rahm. “There's still room to dream about a possibly good Sunday and giving it a chance.”
Meanwhile, Johnson’s wife Paulina is in Saint-Tropez this week. No surprise that the weather in the French Riviera is perfect.
Said DJ: “She’s laughing at me probably.”
ROUND 4 TEE TIMES
7:35 a.m. (2:35 a.m. ET) – Andy Ogletree (HyFlyers GC)
8:35 a.m. (3:35 a.m. ET) – Brooks Koepka (Smash GC)
9:50 a.m. (4:50 a.m. ET) – Phil Mickelson (HyFlyers GC)
10:10 a.m. (5:10 a.m. ET) – Joaquin Niemann (Torque GC)
10:25 a.m. (5:25 a.m. ET) – Adrian Meronk (Cleeks GC)
10:55 a.m. (5:55 a.m. ET) – Abraham Ancer (Fireballs GC)
11:50 a.m. (6:50 a.m. ET) – Dean Burmester (Stinger GC)
12:30 p.m. (7:30 a.m. ET) – Dustin Johnson (4Aces GC)
12:40 p.m. (7:40 a.m. ET) – Jon Rahm (Legion XIII)
1 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) – John Catlin (reserve player)
Photo credit: Oisin Keniry/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)