Nissan Open: Third-Round Notebook  PGA TOUR Media Official LOS ANGELES -- The second round was completed at 6:59 a.m. Saturday when George McNeill -- the only player who did not complete his round on Friday -- two-putted on the par-4 ninth hole from 40 feet 3 inches. The cut was finalized with 79 players at 1-over-par 143 -- both TOUR highs this season.  Rich Beem aced his way up toe leaderboard. (Steve Grayson/WireImage)
• The shot of the day was turned in by Rich Beem with a hole-in-one on the par-3 14th hole with a 7-iron from 177 yards. For his efforts, he is the recipient of a 2007 Altima Coupe, courtesy of tournament sponsor Nissan. It represented the second ace of the week, with Retief Goosen recording the first during the on No. 16. There have been seven aces this season on TOUR. • Perhaps more important than his exploits on No. 14, Rich Beem moved into contention for his fourth career win -- and first since the 2002 PGA Championship -- with the round of the day, 6-under 65. Currently two shots behind Mickelson, Beem is making his ninth career start at the Nissan Open, with eight made cuts and a career-best T10 in 2003. • Four of the top 10 players in the Official World Golf Rankings are currently inside the top six on the leaderboard, including world No. 2 Jim Furyk (T6), fourth-ranked Phil Mickelson (1), fifth-ranked Ernie Els (T6) and tenth-ranked Padraig Harrington (2). • The top 10 players on the leaderboard have all won PGA TOUR titles, accounting for a total of 80 wins: Phil Mickelson (30), Ernie Els (15), Jim Furyk (12), Sergio Garcia (6), Robert Allenby (4), K.J. Choi (4), Rich Beem (3), Geoff Ogilvy (3), Padraig Harrington (2) and Charles Howell III (1). • Phil Mickelson has now held or shared the lead in six out of his last seven rounds, dating back to the first round last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. He is 33-under during that span. • Including this week's event, Phil Mickelson has now held or shared the 54-hole lead of a stroke-play event 23 times on the PGA TOUR. Mickelson has closed the deal 16 of the previous 22 times in stroke-play events (18 of 24 overall). • The 54-hole leader has gone on to win just two of the first six tournaments this season, including Vijay Singh's win in Kapalua and Phil Mickelson's victory at Pebble Beach. • A win for Phil Mickelson on Sunday would be his 31st career TOUR win, moving into a tie with Harry Cooper and Jimmy Demaret for 14th all-time. Ten of his previous 30 victories on TOUR have come in the state of California. • With a 2-under 69, Charles Howell III has now posted 16 of 21 rounds at par or better at the Nissan Open. In five previous starts at the Nissan Open, Howell has tallied two top-10 finishes (2nd in 2003 and T6 in 2002). • Bogey-free rounds on Saturday were posted by Jim Furyk (67) and Briny Baird (67), bringing the total for the week to six. • K.J. Choi (T9) is one of six international players ranked inside the top 10 on the leaderboard. The key to his success this week has been his putting, as he leads the field with just 73 putts (24.3 average). The international contingent of players in the top 10: Padraig Harrington (2), Robert Allenby (T4), Ernie Els (T6), Sergio Garcia (T6), K.J. Choi (T9) and Geoff Ogilvy (T9). • David Toms (70) posted his 14th consecutive round at par or better, the best current streak on TOUR. • Steve Elkington (69/T14) is making his 14th career start at the Nissan Open and is seeking his best career finish here (T8 in 1988 and 1992). His last top-10 finish on TOUR was a runner-up effort at the 2005 PGA Championship. • 2001 Nissan Open champion Robert Allenby (T4) and TOUR rookie/Nationwide Tour graduate Jeff Quinney (T14) will enter the final round seeking their TOUR-leading fourth top-10 finish of the season. Allenby has finished inside the top 10 in all three of his starts in 2007, while Quinney has three straight top-10 finishes (with his only non-top-10 finish coming in his season debut at the Sony Open in Hawaii). Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
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