   
| Memory -- both good and bad -- key for Donald this weekend  PGATOUR.com Senior Correspondent PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- One conundrum to playing championship golf is that the best players must possess terrific muscle memory and, preferably, a terrible memory for the inevitable disappointments that befall everyone who steps on the tee.  (WireImage)
Luke Donald certainly needs both on Sunday when he embarks on his final round in THE PLAYERS Championship. With a stellar 7-under-par 65 Saturday on THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at the TPC Sawgrass -- a score bettered a bit later by Jeff Quinney's 64 -- Donald has put himself in position for his biggest professional victory just two weeks after finishing second at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. Donald, 28, led after three rounds at the suburban Dallas stop but watched hometown favorite Scott Verplank zip past him and relegate him to his second runner-up finish of 2007. "I've been disappointed a few times, but it spurs me on to do better," said Donald, who is tied for sixth at 5-under 139. "When you're playing well, then second place is very disappointing because you're so close and you only get so many chances. But you have to learn to put it aside." So far it appears Donald, ranked 10th in the world, has rebounded from his latest setback. A talented artist as well as golfer, the Englishman painted several of the flagsticks on a relatively benign day at the TPC Sawgrass. Five of his eight birdies were from 8 feet or closer, and he also nailed an 8-foot bogey putt on the 10th that kept his round from clunking into reverse. That was one key. The other was the 25-foot birdie putt at the first. "After that I was off and running; not too much trouble," he said. Seldom has Donald been able to say that at THE PLAYERS Stadium Course. He tied for second in 2005 when he shot a career-low 66 to open the tournament and a 76 to finish it in blustery weather. His other three appearances prior to this year resulted in revised Friday travel plans with all six rounds par or higher. "In previous years you had to pretty much hit fairways to be successful -- or at least I did," he said. "If my game was slightly off, and I wasn't hitting fairways, it was going to be tough for me. I think only one time I was playing well, and that was '05." He was certainly playing splendidly on a sunny day when the wind was calm and the hole locations inviting. The greens lacked the bite they exhibited in the previous two rounds. He hit 11 fairways and 14 greens and needed just 26 putts, including 11 on the front nine where he scored 31. "It was kind of easy golf today," Donald said, providing bulletin-board fodder for the championship committee. "Less wind ... the greens seemed a bit softer. Obviously, when you're playing well, the course does seem a little bit easier. But I think the conditions made it easier, too." The biggest factor, other than the lack of wind, is the playability out of the Bermuda rough. A medium-length driver of the golf ball, Donald was at a distinct disadvantage when the tournament was contested in March and the rough was 5 inches of ryegrass. Needless to say, a move to May has provided conditions that allowed many players to make a move Saturday. "This course demands accuracy -- it did anyway," he pointed out. "I think this year you can give up a little bit of accuracy because of the rough. It's a little less penal than it has been. You can find some lies now and get it around the greens. Sometimes it's nice to be given options, and this course is hard to say the least. "I don't think this place is ever vulnerable," he added. "You know, if you play well, you can shoot a good score." He just has to remember how he did it, so he can repeat it Sunday. And, of course, forget about everything else -- except winning. |
