Harris English made a hat-trick of birdies on the final three holes to take a one-shot lead heading into the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in Southern California on Friday.
The 35-year-old Georgian, seeking his first PGA Tour victory since winning the Travelers Championship in 2021, carded a 6-under-par 66 to move to nine-under for the 54-hole tournament.
After Thursday’s chaos, when strong gusts halted play and sent scores soaring, calmer conditions marked a return to normal for Friday’s third round on the picturesque course overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
English, who had struggled to score an over-par 73 on Thursday, took full advantage of the lull in the winds to compile a round containing seven birdies and just one bogey.
A 20-foot birdie putt on the 16th began his late charge, and he took a share of the lead on the 17th when his second shot from 170 yards from a fairway bunker left him with a seven-foot birdie putt.
English did his best on the par-five 18th, hitting his third to within three feet before grabbing the birdie to take the lead alone.
“I had really good numbers these last three holes and sometimes you just have to be aggressive when you have really good numbers,” English said. “It’s good to finish like this, it’s a good dynamic for tomorrow.”
On Saturday, Andrew Novak, 29, from North Carolina, who has yet to enter the winner’s circle after four years on tour, will lead the race for English.
Novak shot a bogey-free 66 consisting of six birdies and 12 pars to move to eight under for the tournament.
Novak’s round gained momentum with a string of four birdies over five holes starting at the ninth on the South Course at Torrey Pines, including a brilliant chip-in from the green rough on the par-five 13th hole.
He then finished his round – and took the solo lead after calmly rolling in a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th green.
Novak said he was not perturbed by the possibility of a nervy final on Saturday.
“I’ve been nervous a lot playing golf, that’s just part of the problem,” Novak said. “You just have to step up and hit the golf shot. It’s going to come down to that tomorrow.”
Aldrich Potgieter is third at seven under par after shooting a five under par 67. The 20-year-old South African’s round included a spectacular eagle two on the par-four 12th where he holed out from 173 yards.
Germany’s Matti Schmid, South Korea’s Lee Kyoung-Hoon, Joel Dahmen and Lanto Griffin are tied for fourth with a score of five under, four off the lead.
RCW/ACB