An eagle to open, then nothing dropped
Michael Block eagled the 563-yard par-5 first hole on Saturday and never gave a shot back. He signed for a 7-under-par 65 at Warwick Hills in Grand Blanc, Mich., and moved to 13 under, two clear of the field at the Ally Challenge.
The card ran clean all afternoon. Birdies came at the fifth, seventh, ninth, 13th and 16th, with no bogeys anywhere. Block has never won on the PGA Tour Champions circuit. He arrives at Sunday’s final round on a sponsor exemption, a week after a top-five finish at the Rogers Charity Classic.
Try it for $0.99.
Why a top-10 matters more than usual
Block spelled out the arithmetic himself, and it explains the urgency in his golf.
“Top-10 is huge for me,” he said. “If I get a top-10, it gets me into the Sanford International in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, which has been a huge goal of mine because if I do get that, it will be my seventh start and that would officially put me into the official Charles Schwab Cup money list, which would get me into the Playoffs, which would get me then into Norwood Hills and St. Louis, which is where I’m from.”
Block became a familiar name through his top-15 finish at the 2023 PGA Championship as a club professional. Three years on, he is trying to turn that story into a schedule.
His son Ethan is on the bag this week, and the father gave him the credit for the round holding together.
“My son Ethan, who’s on the bag, is the level-headed human out of my family,” Block said. “It’s a Godsend that he’s on my bag because I’m the least level-headed human being in the world.”
Alker and Harrington in range
Steven Alker matched Block’s 65, also bogey-free with seven birdies, and sits second at 11 under. The New Zealander won the Rogers Charity Classic last week, so he brings the form as well as the pedigree.
Padraig Harrington shot 69 and holds third alone at 10 under. Ricardo Gonzalez (69) and Vaughn Taylor (72), the first-round leader, share fourth at 9 under. Thongchai Jaidee, Angel Cabrera, Chad Campbell and Greg Chalmers are a shot further back.
Discover the rest of our golf news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply