Keegan Bradley and Grayson Murray maintain a one-shot lead heading into the final day of the Sony Open in Honolulu, Hawaii.The New Englander scored 63. On the day of moving He moved up 13 places to take the lead.
“Today was one of those days where I had great numbers,” Bradley said after his round. “I saw every shot. I wasn't too worried about that many shots, which is very unusual for me.”
This season marks his 14th year on the PGA Tour. No matter how you look at it, that would make him a veteran, and as a six-time Tour winner you would think he would know how to handle himself in situations where he is being led.
However, playing with a lead and playing with a lead are two different things. Some people may be used to it, regardless of their experience, but that wasn't always the case with Bradley.
“It probably wasn't until the last few years. It took me about 12 years to feel like a veteran here,” Bradley said. “I feel that way now. I didn't feel that way a couple of years ago. Now, like days like today, I feel much more comfortable. I feel totally fine. Tomorrow… I'm expecting to be nervous, and I definitely feel better over this period of time.'' ”
It's interesting and surprising to hear someone who has been in this world for such a long time voice such feelings. But he's clearly on to something, as he's taken his game to new heights in recent years.
Bradley, who was coming off his sixth win at the Connecticut State Travelers Championship last season, shot a 64 on Saturday to break the 54-hole scoring record. He played in the lead that Sunday and got off to a strong start.
However, he bogeyed three of the last six holes on the downhill slope. But it didn't matter because his lead was still large enough to win. He looked comfortable at the beginning of the round, but became more nervous towards the end.
Bradley is in a similar position this week at the Sony Open. He and Murray may be at 14 under, but he's still playing with a lead.
“I'm just trying to worry about myself. If I go out tomorrow and hit a good round, it's going to be tough to win,” he said. “We have a lot of great players and we have a lot of players within a few strokes of first place, so make it difficult as always.”
Bradley is someone a lot of people overlook. He won twice last season but was likely disqualified from the Ryder Cup. But when you're on your A game, it's hard to beat the 16th-ranked player in the world on the greens.
Despite having 10 others within four strokes of their lead, he knows he'll get the No. 7 win and Sunday will be one of his days to try. .
“It's difficult because you can't stare at the leaderboard all day,” Bradley said. “If I hit a bogey or a few pars in a row, I could go from first place to 12th place in an instant. I have to go out tomorrow and probably have to hit one more pretty low shot to win. I have to.”
His 14-under total was tied for second-best score after 54 holes. The last two times it went this far in three days, Bradley won. Will it happen on Sunday? He and Murray will tee off alongside Sam Stevens at 2:50 p.m. ET. In the last group of the day.
Savannah Lee Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through.For more golf information, please follow us @_PlayingThrough On all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirls and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
