Hadley cards flawless 64 to grab the 54-hole lead

CLYMER, N.Y. – Chesson Hadley took control of the LECOM Health Challenge with a flawless 8-under-par 64, his lowest third-round score on the Web.com Tour since 2013. The 30-year-old from Raleigh, N.C. was 8-under through 12 and closed out his round with six straight pars to post 16-under-par 200. Hadley sits one clear of Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada alum Sam Ryder, who birdied the par-5 18th to reach 15-under and get into the final pairing on Sunday afternoon. Beau Hossler, who played alongside Hadley on Saturday afternoon at Peek’n Peak’s Upper Course, bogeyed three of his final five holes but carded a third-round 6-under 66 and is two back heading into the final round. China’s Xinjun Zhang is 13-under-par, while Austin Cook is 12-under-par with one round to go. “I struck the ball incredibly well today and made a few putts,� said Hadley, who hit 14 of 18 greens in regulation on Saturday. “It was just one of those days where everything was great and I got up and down when I needed to.� Hadley got off to a fast start, making six birdies and an eagle in a 12-hole stretch. The former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket was 16-under for the tournament and in sole possession of the lead standing on the 13th tee. Hossler caught Hadley with a birdie on the par-3, but quickly fell back after bogeys on 14 and 15. Hadley held his ground, making critical par saves down the stretch to stay atop the leaderboard with one round to go. He missed the green short on 16, left his chip short and knocked in a tricky five-footer for par. On the home hole Hadley sailed his approach long into the back bunker and blasted it to two feet to keep his card clean on Saturday. “Every shot counts,� said Hadley, who has made two bogeys in 54 holes. “It doesn’t matter if it is for par, birdie or whatever.� Hadley came close to winning earlier this season, at the Rex Hospital Open in front of his friends and family, on a course where he was victorious in 2013. He was tied with Conrad Shindler at the conclusion of the final round and lost in a playoff after missing a short putt for par to force a second extra hole. “I will never forget that,� said Hadley, about the deflating playoff loss. “That’s good, I can fuel off that for a long time. It’s alright, we are alright. We’re leading another golf tournament.� This is the second-time Hadley will hold the outright lead in a Tour event. In 2013, he led the Digital Ally Open by one, carded a final-round 70 and finished tied for third. Hadley has a way of rebounding from shortcomings like the one in Overland Park. At the end of that season, he won the Web.com Tour Championship and ended the year with the third-best career earning total in Tour history ($535,432). He’s hoping history will repeat itself this week. “I knew I was going to be back in this position,� said Hadley. “With my game over the years I know when I’m trending and heading in the right direction.� Hadley’s been in good spirits since arriving to the Peek’n Peak Resort. On Wednesday, the father-of-two had his 30th birthday and his wife Amanda surprised him with a cake in player dining and even got some of the players to sing him happy birthday as two-time Tour winner walked in. “My family came which was great,� he said. “I haven’t seen my kids in three weeks. I typically don’t like to go more than two weeks without seeing them but I did three, it was just the way it went. There are a lot of positive things going in my direction.� Ryder stood in the fairway at the par-5 18th with a great opportunity to reach the green in two, but elected to layup and rely on his wedge game. The second-year Tour pro knocked a wedge to within five feet of the cup and made the birdie putt to breakout of a two-way tie for second with Hossler, and earn a spot alongside Hadley on Sunday afternoon. “I saw he (Hadley) was lighting it up,� said Ryder, who admitted he looks at scoreboards during the round. “I wanted to get into that last pairing. It was nice to make that last one because I wanted to play in the last group with Chesson.� While Ryder is in search of his first Tour win in his 36th career start, the 27-year-old from Winter Park, Fla. has won as a professional. In 2015, the Stetson University alum won the National Capital Open to Support Our Troops on the Mackenzie Tour and ended the season No. 4 on the Order of Merit. This week, Ryder has been able to rekindle some of the magic he had in the Capital of Canada. “I was thinking back to when I won in Ottawa and the greens were Poa Annua/Bent (grass) like these,� said Ryder. “I was struggling early in the round and told myself these are the same kind of greens. I shot 20-under to win there and the scores are similar here.�

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