Katsumasa Miyamoto shoots 62 at Firestone
Japanese golfer Katsumasa Miyamoto shot a third round 62 to get within two shots of the leader, Retief Goosen in the third round of the Bridgestone Invitational, the World Golf Championship event at Firestone Country Club.
On a day when the man who owns Firestone Country Club, Tiger Woods, could only manage a 75, Miyamoto took the course apart despite being only one under par for the day when he stood on the ninth tee. At that stage, he was two over par for the tournament, nine shots behind the leader showing no indication that he might challenge for the title.
That’s when things changed for the 173rd ranked Miyamoto. He birdied three of the next four holes and the smile on his face made it look like he was feeling it. He parred the 13th, then picked up where he left off with birdies at 14 and 15. A par at 16 set him up for a leisurely 64 if he parred the final three holes, which would have tied him for the best round of the week, but Miyamoto was not in a leisurely mood. His second shot into the 400-yard par four 17th – hit from a sand trap – dropped into the hole for an eagle two. His putt on 18 was a little right, missing a chance for a 61.
Miyamoto took just 24 putts to finish the round. He hit 10 of the 14 fairways and 14 greens for the round. None of this would have been predicted after his first two rounds. Sure, he had a few birdies – four in all – but they were mixed in with five bogeys and a double bogey, leaving him 10 shots off the pace set by Goosen. He averaged 27 putts in the first couple of days and hit 10 greens in regulation on each day.
Miyamoto finished his round before the leaders had even teed off. He now gets to relax and wait to see what those ahead of him can do on a course that is playing a lot harder than he made it look.
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