Tambellini continues to cruise, leads by 2
CLARKSBURG, Ontario – Roger Tambellini continued his rock-solid performance at the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic with a 5-under-par 66 in the third round of play. He is at 18 under for the event and leads by two shots over South African Garth Mulroy. Blake Adams and David Branshaw are tied for third at 14 under and Chris Anderson is in fifth at 12 under.“It seemed more exhausting Saturday. It was so windy – probably a good day to fly a kite but a bit tougher for golf,” he quipped beside the 18th green. “But it was a good solid round. I made a lot of four and five footers for par and was able to hang in there.”
From a statistical perspective, Tambellini has been nearly flawless. The San Luis Obispo, Calif., native is tied for second this week in both fairways hit (38 of 41) and greens in regulation (48 of 54). He has taken only 88 putts and made three bogeys in 54 holes.
He has held the third-round lead only one other time in his career at the 2003 Albertsons Boise Open, the first of his two victories on the Nationwide Tour. The other came at the 2005 Price Cutter Charity Championship. Tambellini has also played two full seasons on the PGA Tour (2004 and 2006). He is currently 17th on the Nationwide Tour official money list. At the end of the year “The 25” leading money-winners earn PGA Tour cars for the 2010 season.
Tambellini played alongside Mulroy, who started the day three shots behind.
“I wasn’t watching the leaderboard, but it was nice to see him rolling in some putts too,” Tambellini said of his playing partner. “When you have somebody doing that in your group it gives you a good positive feeling.”
They matched each other hole-for-hole on the front nine with birdies on Nos. 2, 8 and 9. Mulroy got within one stroke of Tambellini on the par-4 11th with a birdie against Tambellini’s bogey.
Mulroy is looking for his second win of the year. He won the South Georgia Classic in April and is currently fifth on the Nationwide Tour money list.
“I had a lot of fun out there Saturday with Roger -- it felt like he and I were trading punches,” he said. “We birdied almost all of the same holes and I didn't want him to run away with it. In the end, there's nothing I can do but play my own ball. If anything, it just makes me focus more.”
In the amateur competition, the team of former Olympic speed skater Catriona Le May Doan and Nationwide Tour professional Derek Lamley lead by three strokes at net 37-under par. Tournament host Wayne Gretzky and Derek Gillespieare in second place at 34 under.
The first two rounds alternated between The Georgian Bay Club (7,139 yards / par 71) and Raven Golf Club at Lora Bay (7,105 yards / par 72). The final two rounds are played at Georgian Bay.
After a short period of morning showers and thunderstorms, the weather cleared in the afternoon with partly cloudy skies, temperatures into the upper 70s and blustery winds from the west at 10-20 mph. The forecast for the final round includes partly cloudy skies and the slight chance for a few showers with cooler and less humid conditions.
The fourth round begins at 8:20 a.m. with groups of three going off the first and 10th tees. Threesomes will be comprised of either three professionals or two professionals and a celebrity or amateur. Play is expected to conclude at approximately 4 p.m.
Scoring averages: The Georgian Bay Club, first round -0.65, second round -0.29, third round -0.88; Raven Golf Club, first round -1.01, second round -0.89.
Third-round notebook:
Calgary native Dustin Risdon became the first player of the 2009 season to make three eagles in the same round. He did it in impressive fashion with a hole-out from 40 yards on the par-4 ninth, a 30-foot downhill putt on the par-5 13th and another hole-out on the par-4 15th with a gap wedge from 128 yards. Risdon finished the day with a 5-under 66, 11 under overall and is tied for sixth. The last player to make three eagles in a round was Kyle Reifers in the opening round of the 2008 Bank of America Open.
Blake Adams posted the low round of the day with a 7-under-par 64.
Canadian players competing over the weekend include Jon Mills, tied for 16th; Danny Wax, tied for 16th; Dustin Risdon, tied for sixth; Graham Delaet, tied for 48th; Bryan DeCorso, tied for 63rd; Brad Fritsch, tied for 67th.
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