Jason Day announces dominance on course with 2-stroke lead at Quail Hollow

On a day when so many golfers blew up Quail Hollow, Jason Day made a “Don’t mess with me” statement on the course and then again in the media room.

Australian Day shot a 67 Saturday to go 10 under in the Wells Fargo Championship, two strokes better than any other player. He waded into a creek barefoot on the final hole of the day to save par (”Felt great. It was warm out there!”) and later made it clear he’s recommitted himself to being one of golf’s elite players.

“Two years ago, I was finishing off leads (through three rounds) pretty much every single time,” Day said. “This week I feel differently than any other week that I’ve played (of late). I really feel like things are close” to being a dominant player again.

“I feel like I can win pretty much every week. Tomorrow is going to be a lot of fun.”

Nick Watney enters Sunday’s final round second in the field at 8 under, followed by a four-way tie at 7 under. That 7-under group includes Peter Uihlein, who shot a 62 Saturday, one stroke off Rory McIlroy’s course record. Uihlein, who has never won a PGA Tour event, was in one of the first groups on the course Saturday (starting at 2 over for the tournament). About 50 spots out of the lead, and with pin placements and the weather easing course conditions, Uihlein looked to “blitz” Quail Hollow with aggressive decisions, and pulled it off.

“They set up the golf course a lot easier than they did the first few days,” said Uihlein, who was the top U.S. amateur in 2010. “And the greens were a lot softer than they had been.”

Following hole changes prior to last August’s PGA Championship, the first six holes at Quail Hollow are now more challenging than ever, particularly the remade par-3 fourth hole. Uihlein played par golf on those first four holes, then went on a fantasy round: five consecutive birdies, then an eagle on the par-5 10th hole. He nearly got in trouble on No. 18 when an approach shot rolled dangerously close to the water. He saved par on 18 for that 62.

Uihlein assumed this would be a day when Quail Hollow would give up birdies, but he had no comparative results from others to confirm that impression.

“When you’re teeing off as early as I did, you don’t really know (how the course will play) - there are no scores out there,” said Uihlein. “You’re lying 50th; you might as well try blitzing it.”

Five who mattered

Phil Mickelson: After flirting with missing the cut Friday, he scored five birdies and an eagle to climb into the mix at 5 under.

McIlroy: Had he not bogeyed No. 18, McIlroy would have had a spectacular finish Saturday, with four consecutive birdies.

Jonas Blixt: Not much in between scoring for the Swede: six birdies and then a hideous double bogey on the par-4 No. 9 hole.

Peter Malnati: His spectacular first two rounds unraveled some, centered on a double bogey on the par-5 seventh hole.

Rickie Fowler: Had to overcome a double bogey on No. 17, but still had a 3-under round.

Observations

▪ Saturday’s kind weather (as in soft, receptive greens) was a good news/bad news thing for those trying to catch up to Friday’s leaders. They loved how the course played in the morning, and were hoping conditions would decline by the time those they were chasing teed off early afternoon.

▪ McIlroy said the best way to judge a great round (like Uihlein’s 62) is not the absolute score, but rather how that compared to the field in general, since weather can so affect playing performance.

▪ McIlroy said one of the hardest lessons of his pro career (he mentioned Sawgrass, next week’s tour stop in Jacksonville, Fla., as a prime example) is not being so stubborn he ignores the booby traps inherent to certain courses, thinking he can outhit what the architect intended.

▪ The best indicator of how forgiving the greens started Saturday morning might be the water-hazard No. 17 par-3: There were a slew of birdies early in the day because players felt so emboldened that their shots wouldn’t bounce and roll into oblivion. That seemed to even out with some bogeys on the leader board in the afternoon.

▪ Funny “Couldn’t do it again if he tried to” scene on the 10th hole, when Nick Watney’s shot landed in the seat of a patron’s folding chair, under a tree.

Worth mentioning

▪ Uihlein is the son of the president and CEO of the parent company of Titleist (which not coincidentally is one of his sponsors).

▪ Aaron Wise had that miserable experience on No. 18 of not being able to push the ball through thick grass just beyond the green on his first attempt. While the ball moved, it didn’t go anywhere, so it was a wasted stroke.

▪ But then Wise saved bogey by holing in from just off the green to finish his round three strokes off the lead.

▪ Former Charlotte Hornets great Muggsy Bogues and Carolina Panthers radio analyst Eugene Robinson among the fans at Quail Hollow Saturday.

They said it

“It was set up for us to be able to make a move. There were 10 or 12 pins we could actually get to and get it reasonably close..” – Mickelson, on the course set-up.

“I’m just not that comfortable with anything right now.” – McIlroy on what ails his game.

“My 61 was way better.” – McIlroy, joking in response to a question about Uihlein’s 62, one off McIlroy’s course record.

Sunday’s forecast

Partly cloudy skies with a high of 81 degrees. Just a 10 percent chance of rain.

This story was originally published May 5, 2018 at 7:18 PM with the headline "Jason Day announces dominance on course with 2-stroke lead at Quail Hollow."