PGA Tour almost reached a rare milestone

American Wyndham Clark, with a 60 for round 3 of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, broke the 18-hole record in the history of the tournament as well as the host course, while the PGA Tour almost reached the difficult 59-stroke record.

Wyndham Clark thanks the crowd after putting on the 14th green during round three of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Pebble Beach Golf Links on February 3, 2024. Photo: AFP — Wyndham Clark thanks the crowd after putting on the 14th green during round three of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Pebble Beach Golf Links on February 3, 2024. Photo: *AFP*

Clark closed the 60 strokes in the penultimate round of the 2024 Pebble Beach Pro-Am on the morning of February 4, Hanoi time. With this result, he broke the single-round record in the history of the tournament (62 strokes), as well as the host course of the same name (61 strokes) and almost became the 13th face to shoot 59 strokes on the PGA Tour, counting from the first year in 1929.

Clark missed that opportunity on the 18th hole after making a birdie putt for eagle. The American averaged 308.7 yards for the entire match, hitting just nine of 14 fairways. But thanks to his efficiency with his irons and putters, he still reached the green in par for 16 holes, scoring a total of nine birdies, two eagles and just one bogey. Clark's two eagles came with 38-foot putts on the 2nd and 40-foot putts on the 6th.

The only bogey, at the par-3 12th, was an impressive display of damage limitation. Clark hit his shot into a bunker about 35 yards from the flag. His next shot landed on the edge of the bunker in front of the green. There, Clark couldn’t swing his forehand normally. So he reversed the iron and hit it to the opposite edge of the green and finished the hole.

Throughout the third round, Clark putted 23 times with a total distance of approximately 174 meters, of which the first nine holes alone accounted for 137 meters.

At the penultimate stage, Clark jumped 22 places to lead at under-17 on the par-72 course, with eight opponents within four strokes, including world number one Scottie Scheffler.

The Pebble Beach Pro-Am, founded in 1937, was upgraded to a special event on the PGA Tour this year, bringing the prize fund to $20 million, including $3.6 million for the winner.

Clark has been playing professionally since 2017 and has played 145 tournaments on the PGA Tour, with two wins in 2023, including the Farmers Insurance Open and the major US Open nearly six weeks apart.

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