Friday’s heavy winds made things a little complicated, but it looks like we’ll have a winner come Sunday afternoon at the 2024 Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin — but it’s going to be a battle. When the horn blew — play was suspended due to darkness — 12 players were at or within two shots of the lead. J.T. Poston — playing in the final group — and Doug Ghim both reached 15 under to lead the way, with four players tied for third and six players tied for seventh. Poston did a lot of his damage during his first two rounds, posting 64-65. However, he couldn’t get much going on Saturday, playing his 13 holes 2 under. He’ll have five holes to play when golf resumes on Sunday. If you missed any of the action on Saturday, no worries, we have you covered. Here are a few notes from the yet-to-be-completed third round of the Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas.
Doug Ghim rebounds
Ghim struggled a bit during his second round, finishing up with a 1-under 70. But his third round was a different story. On his way out, Ghim made birdies on Nos. 5 and 9 to make the turn with a 2-under 33. After hitting the halfway house, the 28-year-old made birdies on Nos. 10, 13, 14, 15 and 16 to get to 15-under total and in a share of the lead. He was on the 17th green with a five-foot par putt when play was suspended. He did most of his damage with his irons, ranking first in the field during the third round in Strokes Gained: Approach, gaining 2.746 strokes with the blades.
Kurt Kitayama catches fire at the turn
Kitayama posted rounds of 66-68 to open the tournament, so he had some work to do on Saturday afternoon to catch the leaders. After eight straight pars to open his third round, he got to work. Before making the turn, Kitayama made birdie on the par-5 ninth thanks to a great bunker shot with his third. Then, on the back nine, he made birdies on Nos. 10, 11, 13, 14, and 15 to storm up the leaderboard and get to 14 under total, one back of Ghim and Poston. Kityama made three pars to end his round as he was able to finish before the lights turned off. He’ll be within striking distance once the final round gets underway.
Feel-good story
If you’re looking for someone to root for on Sunday, look no further than Gary Woodland. Woodland had brain surgery in September 2023 to remove tumors and he’s been working his way back into form ever since. The four-time Tour winner had two top-25 finishes in 23 previous starts this year. On Saturday, Woodland shot a bogey-free 6-under 65 thanks to a hot putter. He gained over five shots on the field with the flat-stick, ranking sixth in SG: Putting during the third round. “The last month has been really good,” he said. “I just hit a year (since the surgery) a couple weeks ago so that’s exciting. It’s all coming together. I’m feeling better and the game is coming around, which makes a lot of sense. I’m excited and happy to be here and really happy to finish tonight so I can get some sleep tomorrow.” Woodland’s last win came at the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He’ll have a chance to break his drought on Sunday.
Top 10 and odds to win
| Position | Player | Score | Odds to win |
|---|---|---|---|
| T-1 | Doug Ghim | 15 under | (+900) |
| T-1 | J.T Poston | 15 under | (+300) |
| T-3 | Kurt Kitayama | 14 under | (+1200) |
| T-3 | Gary Woodland | 14 under | (+1600) |
| T-3 | Harris English | 14 under | (+700) |
| T-3 | Alejandro Tosti | 14 under | (+1000) |
| T-7 | K.H. Lee | 13 under | (+4000) |
| T-7 | J.J Spaun | 13 under | (+2500) |
| T-7 | Davis Thompson | 13 under | (+2200) |
| T-7 | Norman Xiong | 13 under | (+1800) |
| T-7 | Taylor Pendrith | 13 under | (+750) |
| T-7 | Matti Schmid | 13 under | (+1000) |
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