“How does the meat grinder that is the U.S. Open affect those who are in the field today? Relief, optimostic, shell shocked?” -- @ChippingOut

In a word, yes. Earlier in the week, Bubba Watson, who played Pebble Beach the week before the U.S. Open, said it was the hardest he’d ever seen a golf course play. This week? Watson is one shot off the lead after a 65 this morning. Kenny Perry echoed similar sentiments, saying that it was nice to know that when you have a 3-footer and you hit it well, you know it’s going in the hole here. -- Brian Wacker

To say that players are happy to be at the Travelers Championship and on greens that roll smooth is an understatement.

“The greens were great,” said defending champion Kenny Perry. “It was nice to know from 3 feet you know if you hit a good putt, it was going in, it wasn't going to bounce off line.”

Perry was talking about Pebble Beach and last week’s U.S. Open, where the normally bumpy poa annua greens were pushed to the edge, as some players put it.

“I don't know about poa annua when it's stressed out like it was there,” Perry added. “That was some tough putting last week, but it's always great to be back to a place you've won.”

Perry hasn’t been able to take advantage of good scoring conditions so far, though. He’s even par through 13 holes with two birdies, two bogeys and already has 23 putts.

Ryder Cup Captain Corey Pavin? He has 23 putts, too, only he’s through 15 holes and has six birdies and just one bogey for an early share of the lead. -- Brian Wacker

Due to the two-hour weather delay Thursday morning, tee times for the afternoon groups have been pushed back two hours. Here are a few groups to keep an eye on in the afternoon (along with their adjusted tee times):

2:44 p.m. ET (1st tee) -- Tiger Woods, Steve Stricker, Jason Bohn. Woods, the four-time Memorial champion, is making his first start since having to withdraw from THE PLAYERS Championship last month with a neck injury. Stricker came back from an injury last week in Fort Worth, finishing T38.

2:44 p.m. ET (10th tee) -- Camilo Villegas, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar. Villegas has not played well in his last two starts, but he does have a win earlier this year at The Honda Classic. Johnson also has a win, having successfully defended his title at Pebble Beach. And Kuchar has played well at Muirfield Village in his last three starts, including a tie for fifth last year.

2:55 p.m. ET (1st tee) -- Tim Clark, Robert Allenby, Adam Scott. Clark and Allenby battled for THE PLAYERS title, with Clark finally breaking through for his first TOUR win. Scott won the Valero Texas Open in his last start.

2:55 p.m. ET (10th tee) -- Geoff Ogilvy, Lucas Glover, J.B. Holmes -- Ogilvy is a past U.S. Open champion. Glover is the defending champ. With the U.S. Open in two weeks, they'll be priming their games.

3:06 p.m. (10th tee) -- Kenny Perry, Mark Wilson, Mark Calcavecchia. Perry has won this event three times; Calcavecchia is making his last TOUR start before embarking on his Champions Tour career.

Brian Davis has some company at the top again. Zach Johnson just drained a 22-footer at the 12th hole to move to 19 under.

Right now, the two men are holding steady on pace to tie the tournament record set by Kenny Perry in his 2003 and ‘05 victories. Another birdie or two on the way home and the 72-hole mark is theirs.

The birdie was Johnson’s second in his last three holes. He’s already won twice in Texas at the 2008 and ‘09 Valero Texas Opens.

If you’re looking for an early favorite for next week’s Memorial Tournament, you might want to consider Kenny Perry.

The 49-year-old always seems to play well this time of year, and Sunday is no exception. He’s recovered from bogeys on his first two holes to birdie three of his last five and move to 12 under. 

Granted, he’s still five strokes off the lead, but he’s got to draw confidence from those previous rounds of 68-64-67. And don’t forget that Perry is a three-time winner at Muirfield Village>

Jason Bohn is working on what could be a career low – and maybe a course record -- at Colonial Thursday. He's played his first 13 holes in 7 under and owns sole possession of the lead.

Bohn set the tone for his round early with a 12-foot birdie putt on the first hole. His other birdie putts have come from 20, 15, 18, 6, 4 and 13 feet.

The course record at Colonial is a 61 shot by six players -- Keith Clearwater (1993), Lee Janzen (1993), Greg Kraft (1999), Kenny Perry (2003), Justin Leonard (2003) and Chad Campbell (2004).

Bohn, who won his second TOUR event earlier this year, has a solid record at Colonial. He's played in the Crowne Plaza Invitational four times previously and twice has finished among the top 25. He's never missed a cut and has nine rounds in the 60s, including a 65 in the second round last year.

Kenny Perry was hoping to post his first top-10 finish in a full-field event since winning the Travelers Championship last year. But a slow start Sunday has dropped the 49-year-old out of contention.

Perry bogeyed the first two holes, including a three-putt at the par-3 second. He also bogeyed another par-3, the fifth and is now 3 over for his round and 4 under for the tournament. He's currently in a tie for 22nd.

Since winning the Travelers Championship last June, Kenny Perry has managed just two top-10 finishes on TOUR -- and both of those were in limited-field events.

"It's been a long year," he said.

But it's been a good week for the 49-year-old Perry, whose 4-under 66 in Saturday's third round puts him at 7 under for the tournament at the HP Byron Nelson Championship and moved up into contention to make a run at his 15th career PGA TOUR title on Sunday.

"It's amazing what one good golf swing can do for you," Perry said. "Actually, I've got a little pop back this week. My driver has a little length to it, the fairway is firm, the ball is rolling out, which is helping me."

And he's also got a putter that's working. His Ping Craz-E putter that he's used for a long time broke earlier this year in Hawaii. He's using a back-up putter now and he likes the feel of it. He made two early putts Saturday -- one from just under 15 feet for birdie on the second hole and another from just under 10 feet to save par at the third hole -- to gain some momentum.

"I made putts that you've got to make to get in a tournament," Perry said.

Now he's aiming for a win. With his 50th birthday -- and the Champions Tour -- just a few months away, it would be very sweet.

"I've been working out hard, trying to rededicate myself and get back in the mix here," Perry said, "and actually I have a great shot at winning a golf tournament again."

To replay Perry's round on Shot Tracker, click here .

Because he's had such a bad year -- by his standards, anyway -- Kenny Perry was well under the radar before this week. His only top-10 of the year remains the tie for sixth he posted in the winners-only SBS Championship in the season opener, where he famously broke his putter five minutes before his tee time. In short, it's been that kind of year for the Kentuckian.

But even as he approaches his 50th birthday, he's still one of the best drivers off the golf ball on the planet -- he ranks fifth in Total Driving -- and that is definitely an advantage on the 7,166-yard TPC Four Seasons.

Perry is 5 under for the day through 13 holes and sits just one shot off the lead. He's made just three bogeys all week -- none on Saturday -- and his personal highlight came on Friday when he jarred his approach shot on the 435-yard 10th for his seventh eagle of the year.

Kenny Perry has just made the turn at 3 under for his round and is now 6 under for the tournament, four shots off the pace.

Perry has hit three consecutive approach shots to within 10 feet, although he only converted one into a birdie.

Perry is looking for his first win this year. He hasn't had a top-10 finish in a full-field event since winning the Travelers Championship last June.