FORT WORTH, Texas — The first event back after three months off was supposed to give PGA Tour players a chance to get their sea legs. A comfortable stretch. A quiet, but competitive few rounds of golf in the Texas heat after 91 days of quarantine.
Instead, the power-packed field at Colonial Country Club has turned the Charles Schwab Challenge into a free-for-all. Xander Schauffele’s 66 gave him a one-stroke lead at the conclusion of Saturday’s play, but names like Gary Woodland, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Branden Grace and Collin Morikawa were all a single stroke back with a host of other top guns are looming close behind.
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Colonial had been forgiving through most of the day but tightened up a little as the leaders came in through considerable heat. The forecast isn’t expected to let up on Sunday, with temperatures to rise near triple digits. It’s not unusual for the Schwab to have warm days, but since it was pushed back three weeks due to the pandemic, and with an early Texas summer hot spell, stamina could be an issue for the final round.
Schauffele was masterful again, following up rounds of 65 and 66 with another smooth 66 — this time posting a pair of bogeys on par-3s, but adding six birdies as his driver kept him in good position much of the day.
What’s most surprising is the way Schauffele has been playing Colonial like it’s one of his favorites. In reality, he’s failed to make the cut the last two years in Fort Worth and managed just a T-48 in his 2017 debut.
But he insisted familiarity breeds comfort.
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“Playing it more makes me more comfortable,” he said. “But I think in years prior it was much windier and I didn’t play the greens as great. Just a comfort factor. My caddie (Austin Kaiser) has gotten better, as well, in terms of picking lines and doing his job, so I think collectively we’ve done a better job preparing for this week.”
With a top field in place — the best the tournament had seen in decades — there’s an intense vibe that might not always be detectable at this event. Daniel Berger and 36-hole leader Harold Varner III are just two shots behind. Rory McIlroy, Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Rose, Corey Conners and Abraham Ancer are all sitting three back at 10-under.
This all sets up a surreal finish, but with no fans on site. Aside from a handful of external grandstands providing occasional pockets of applause, the event has been held like a major junior event, with just volunteers on site.
Schauffele said it doesn’t bother him, since he’s sort of an introvert anyway.
“I’m kind of a quiet guy, I guess, so I’m not — I don’t have like a huge effect on the crowd I’d say, so not having fans isn’t the craziest thing to me,” he said. “I think it’ll feel almost like amateur golf or junior golf where we all want to win. We all want to compete, and we’re all super competitive. When we were younger and playing in college or over the summer an amateur schedule, it was quiet. There weren’t any fans out, and we all were kind of going head-to-head, and everyone wanted it just as much as the next guy in line.
“I sort of feel like it might kind of feel like that tomorrow, where coming down the stretch if you’re in the hunt, everyone is going to be — at least leaderboards are up, that kind of helps — but it’ll be really quiet and everyone is going to be minding their own business.”
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