PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. – After saying this week he is a novice to the West Coast lifestyle, Jacob Bridgeman has managed to adapt seamlessly to the reach-for-the-stars Los Angeles vibe.
Bridgeman set the stage for his first career victory, dominating with a 7-under-par 64 on Saturday to take a six-shot lead into the final round of the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club.
“I’m a competitor,” Bridgeman said. “I haven’t had a ton of chances to win yet in my career, but I’m hoping that I’ll have a chance, a good chance (Sunday) all the way till the end. If I can get it done, I’d like to kind of start rolling and get a lot of these.”
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy (69) moved alone into second place at 13 under, while South Africa’s Aldrich Potgieter (65) is third at 12 under and England’s Aaron Rai (66) is fourth at 11 under. Xander Schauffele (70) and Kurt Kitayama (68) are in fifth at 10 under.
Second-round co-leader Marco Penge of England, in the final group Saturday with Bridgeman, struggled to a 3-over 74 and fell into a tie for seventh place at 9 under.
Bridgeman, a South Carolina native, has the largest 54-hole lead at the Genesis Invitational since Steve Stricker, who also was six shots in front in 2010. The Clemson alum is threatening the tournament’s 72-hole record of 20 under.
With six top-10 results in his career, including a runner-up finish at the Cognizant Classic last February, the 26-year-old Bridgeman has been closing in on a trophy. Two of those top 10s have come in four events this year, including a tie for eighth at Pebble Beach last week.
Bridgeman had a share of the lead after each of the first two rounds before taking personal ownership of the top spot Saturday. He was 3 under through his first four holes of the third round and then topped that after the turn. An eagle 3 at No. 11 helped Bridgeman go 4 under through the first three holes of the back nine to reach 7 under on the day.
Bridgeman finished 5 under over his final nine holes and now must defend his large lead with McIlroy as his playing partner Sunday.
“I know he’s going to play well tomorrow (and) I know that I can’t back up at all,” Bridgeman said. “I was paired with Rory (last year) and it was kind of a lot, I thought. Then I got out there and he was super nice to me and super welcoming, and the fans were great as well. I think if it was my first time, maybe it would be a little unsettling, but now I’m not worried about it.”
McIlroy, the defending Masters Tournament champion, entered the day one shot off the lead and was 2 under on the front nine before closing with seven consecutive pars.
“You’re grinding over 3-footers and all of a sudden you get one (putt) that you think you can have a bit of a run at and if you hit it a little bit too hard,” McIlroy said. “The greens (were) really, really difficult today. That was most of the frustration. Actually felt like I played pretty well.”
Potgieter opened Saturday with an eagle-3 at the first hole but closed with a bogey at 18. Schauffele was in reach of second place before he recorded a bogey on two of the final three holes.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who just made the cut on the number Friday, shot a 5-under 66 in the third round and is at 5 under for the tournament. Scheffler had slow starts in each of the past two events before strong final rounds put him in contention.
“I played now 11 rounds the last few weeks and I had eight pretty solid ones and three I’d like to have back,” Scheffler said. “So overall, I feel like my game is in a good spot. Got a few things that I need to clean up, but I feel I’m continuing to trend in the right direction.”
Defending champion Ludvig Aberg of Sweden (69) is tied for 27th at 4 under.
The tournament is taking place less than a mile from where a destructive wildfire tore through the local neighborhood and forced last year’s event to be relocated just outside of San Diego at Torrey Pines.
–Doug Padilla, Field Level Media
