T h e S T A T E o f G o l f C O V E R S T O R Y
gates open and I was able to come through.”
JC Anderson of St. Louis; three-time National Champion Mike Small of Champaign, Ill.; 2007 Champion Chip Sullivan of Troutville, Va.; and Mark Sheftic of Blue Bell, Pa., tied for fourth at 283. Sheftic and Sullivan, who shared the 54-hole lead, faded after the front nine and each posted a 76.
Small, the men’s golf coach at the University of Illinois, sprinted out with four front-nine birdies to climb within a stroke of the lead, but saw his chances end when he missed the fairway on the ninth hole, which led to a bogey. He later bogeyed the 14th hole and fell out of contention. He closed with a double bogey at 18 for a 72.
Perry elevated his game at the right moment on the challenging 7,489-yard Crosswater Club, which is a longer than any major championship layout this year. “The greens were relatively soft and you knew you had to play well," said Perry.
“You are always traversing the Deschutes River. Trouble is lurking at all times. You have to put the tee ball in play, shaping the shots consistently and eliminating that big mistake.
“I looked at the scoreboard after I bogeyed 15, which is something that I normally don’t do,” said Perry. “I saw Polzin birdied 16 and when I got to the green at 16, I saw him make a fist pump after a great birdie at 17. So, I stepped over my putt at 16 and knew that I had to make it.”
Perry leads the 20-member contingent to the PGA Championship, which will be his second consecutive trip to the Season’s Final Major.
“When the bell rings on Thursday (in Rochester), everyone will be the same,” said Perry. “Tiger included. I’m sure that he feels the same as all the other great players. You are only as good as you are that day. I’m tied with Tiger!”
“When the bell rings on Thursday (in Rochester), everyone will be the same...Tiger included. I'm sure that he feels the same as all the other great players. You are only as good as you are that day.
I’m tied with Tiger!”
- Rod Perry, 2013 PNC Champion -
Perry sprinted to the lead with birdies at the second and sixth holes, catching Polzin, and added a birdie at the par-4 10th to give him a one-stroke margin. Polzin, the PGA head professional at Royal Oaks Country Club in Houston, stumbled with bogeys at 11 and 13, before staging a late rally that caught Perry’s attention.
Rod Perry, of Crane Lakes Golf and Country Club won the PGA PNC by 3 shots at The Crossater Club in Sunriver, OR. He had four birdies and a single bogey in the clinching round.
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