The Daily Wrap-up, Round 3: Buick Invitational
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- John Rollins caught up to Camilo Villegas again, and this time kept right on going until he finished off a 2-under 70 that gave him a three-shot lead Saturday in the Buick Invitational.
Rollins, who lost a share of the lead with a bogey on the final hole of the second round, made up for that quickly with two birdies in the first four holes to take the lead, then surged farther ahead when the Colombian struggled from the sand and on the greens.
The margin could have been even wider if not for three three-putt bogeys by Rollins over the final seven holes, including the par-5 18th that raised hopes of Villegas and a few others who still need some help on Sunday.
Rollins was at 12-under 204, his first outright lead going into the last round in his nine years on the PGA TOUR.
Villegas capped off an ugly front nine with a double bogey when his bunker shot sailed over the green, leaving him five shots behind. He steadied himself for a 2-over 74, at least leaving him in range.
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PLENTY OF PLAYERS IN LINE TO CHALLENGE ROLLINS
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
SAN DIEGO -- John Rollins knows from personal experience it can be done.
He won his two PGA TOUR events by erasing a seven-stroke deficit at the 2002 Bell Canadian Open and a three-shot disadvantage at the B.C. Open presented by Turning Stone Resort in 2006.
So Rollins is hardly taking his position entering the final round of the Buick Invitational for granted.
That three-shot advantage over Camilo Villegas is big -- make no mistake about it. At the same time, Rollins knows there is still a lot of work to be done on Torrey Pines' South course, which is averaging nearly 2 ½ strokes over par.
"But if you want to get to this level and do these things, you're going to have to learn to sleep on the lead after the third round," said Rollins, who has run counter to form and is 10 under on the course that hosted the U.S. Open last summer.
"I'm just looking to relax, have a good dinner tonight, just try to get some rest and go back and play with my 14-month-old little girl. She'll keep me grounded for a while, I'm sure."
Rollins is bidding to become the fifth straight 54-hold leader to win on TOUR this year. Villegas, who won his first two TOUR titles in the last two events of 2008, led after each of the first two rounds but couldn't keep pace on Saturday.
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| Saturday's Best |
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The par-5 sixth on the South Course at Torrey Pines was the easiest with a scoring average of 4.635.
The par-4 seventh hole on the South Course at Torrey Pines was the toughest with a scoring average of 4.495.
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Paul Goydos chipped in for eagle on the par-5 sixth hole to help salvage an even-par round of 72. 
Charles Warren's 4-under 68 was the lowest number on the board and moved him from T32 to T6. | QUOTE OF THE DAY | ||
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INSIDE THE ROPES WITH THE PGA TOUR NETWORK
PGA TOUR Network correspondent Bob Stevens offers these observations from Saturday's action. Listen to PGA TOUR Live coverage on XM 146/SIRIUS 209 or right here at PGATOUR.com.
If you think third-round leader John Rollins feels down about bogeying his final hole for the second straight day and runner-up Camilo Villegas is dissapointed by his adventurous 74 that dropped him to three shots back, guess again. Both were remarkably upbeat after their rounds. Rollins was excited about his ball-striking and Villegas was still confident despite a wayward driver. The leaders are either in denial, or quietly thrilled that nobody came out of the pack to catch them.
I've been waiting all week for the South Course to decide whether it would be more like the U.S. Open course that Tiger barely broke par on to win in June, or the Buick Invitational course he won at 18-under-par four months before. It's more like the Open course, especially with the showers that blew through Saturday, making the rough very thick and wet and placing a premium on driving it in the fairway. The player that does that best on Sunday will likely succeed Tiger as Buick champ.
Another thing to watch Sunday is the greens, especially late in the day. John Rollins told me on the practice green before his round that the bumpy poa annua greens are tough to read, you just have to trust a line and be confident with your stroke. Playing in the last group, late in the day, Rocket had three three-putts in his final seven holes, negating some brilliant tee-to-green play. All of those missed short putts, he told me, were affected by the poa.
| What the top finishers said... | ||||||||||||||||
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THIRD-ROUND NOTEBOOK: BUICK INVITATIONAL
By Mark Stevens, PGA TOUR Staff
SAN DIEGO -- Because more than 78 players made the 36-hole cut of 2 over, a secondary cut was made following Saturday's third round, which came at 5 over with 71 players advancing to the final round. This marks the second straight year that 85 players have made the first cut. The last time fewer than 80 players made the cut at the Buick Invitational was in 2003 (75 players).
• For the first time this year, preferred lies were implemented for Saturday's third round. Tee markers were also moved up on holes 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 13 and 18.
• John Rollins has won twice on the PGA TOUR, first at the 2002 Bell Canadian Open then at the 2006 B.C. Open presented by Turning Stone Resort. He has taken the 54-hole lead into the final round three times on TOUR, twice in 2003 (Buick Classic, FUNAI Classic-Disney) and once in 2005 (Deutsche Bank Championship). His finishes in those events were a playoff loss to Jonathan Kaye at the 2003 Buick Classic, a tie for fifth at the 2003 FUNAI Classic-Disney and a tie for 15th at the 2005 Deutsche Bank Championship.
• Rollins' three-stroke lead after 54 holes is nowhere near Tiger Woods' eight-stroke lead heading into last year's final round at the Buick Invitational, the largest 54-hole lead in tournament history. The good news for Rollins is the 54-hole leaders in each of the first four PGA TOUR events this season have won.
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