BLAINE, Minn. – Cameron Tringale is 18 holes from ridding himself of two unwanted asterisks attached to his record.
Since 2009, Tringale has made 305 starts as a professional on the PGA Tour, the most of any player during the span who has not won. And his $13,973,828 in career winnings is the most in the PGA Tour’s history by someone who has not won.
But in his 306th start this week in the 3M Open, Tringale is knocking on victory’s door after a 5-under-par 66 on a breezy, hot Saturday at TPC Twin Cities. In a bogey-free round highlighted by an eagle from four feet on the par-5 12th, Tringale moved to the top of the leaderboard at 12 under through 54 holes.
“I am in a great position,” Tringale said when asked about his mindset going into the final round. “I don’t have stress for my card, I just feel like I have tons of upside tomorrow and I’m excited to kind of play with that freedom.
“I’m happy with kind of everything, honestly. I’ve liked just about every putt I’ve hit. Hopefully, I’ll continue to do that tomorrow. I drove it pretty well and gave myself some looks that I capitalized on. I really just saved my tail quite a few times with the putter.
“And just try not to overthink it; that’s the key, isn’t it?”
If Tringale is to shed himself of those annoying asterisks, he’ll have to earn it. On a day that saw eight players grab at least a share of the lead, 22 finished within four shots of the lead, with another seven winding up five back.
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One shot behind Tringale is 2019 U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland (67) as well as Maverick McNealy (68). Two back is a group of eight, including major champions Jimmy Walker (68) and Charl Schwartzel (68). In a group four back is Keith Mitchell, who tied a PGA Tour record when he made seven consecutive birdies to start his round. He didn’t make another but his 66 moved him to 8 under.
“I think it’s anyone’s game really,” Tringale said. “You can go low out here, and I think someone will do it tomorrow. Hopefully, it’s me.”
Woodland has been healthy for two months now after battling various injuries. Seeing putting guru Phil Kenyon last at the British Open has gotten his putter healthy, too. It was the first time he had seen Kenyon since last August.
“The putter’s felt as good as it has in a long time,” Woodland said. “Seeing putts go in has been huge, but I’m also starting to hit the golf ball well, I’m starting to control my irons, drive the golf ball semi in play the last couple days. But I’m feeling pretty good about my game compared to where I’ve been the last year and a half. I’ve got a long way to go, but when I trust what I’m doing, I’m pretty good.”
He trusted his gut after making double-bogey six on his first hole, when he short-sided himself and then bladed his chip across the green. From there he made six birdies without a bogey.
“I knew I was playing well,” Woodland said. “I had a great warmup. Yesterday I didn’t feel very good on the golf course, just didn’t feel very comfortable and it was the best round I played in a year and a half. So, I had a lot of confidence with a good warmup today, so that’s what I told myself on 2. And I hit a great drive on 2 and really got momentum going and played solid all day.”
McNealy, whose girlfriend is LPGA Tour star Danielle Kang, is looking for his first victory. The 25-year-old has been in the mix this year, finishing second to Daniel Berger in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and tying for fourth behind Stewart Cink in the RBC Heritage.
“I’ve got a chance to win,” he said. “I’ve learned every single time I’ve been in the mix on the back nine Sunday. Picked up a few things here and there, AT&T, Hilton Head and Colonial, and I’m excited to put those things into practice tomorrow when the heat’s on.
“I’m sure I’ll learn something else, but we’ll see if I can execute on those.”
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