Frys.com Open round three: Can McNeill keep his cool?

Into the unknown Sunday, with a player who’s such a novice we have no way of knowing how he’ll handle defending his first PGA Tour Sunday lead. George McNeill is certainly capable of playing as well on wobbly Sunday as any other day, but things are much different when you’re the hunted rather than the hunter.

What a difference a windy day makes. Maybe not the 10-shot swing some had been suggesting, but Saturday’s round averaged 73.5 compared with a little over 68 for the same players over the first two days. Only a select few managed to break par and only one of them, our unlikely leader McNeill, managed 5 under.

Naturally he promises to play just like any other day and, on his side, this is not some high profile event with a big circus atmosphere to unnerve him. On the forums punters are suggesting his price of a little over 1.6 is way too generous for someone five shots ahead of a chasing pack as modest as this. Against that though we have the big unknown of his temperament. And ask Sergio Garcia how impregnable a 5-shot lead is.

Admittedly there’s not too may in the chasing pack I’d strongly fancy to rein him without firing up their putting game. The two that look most likely are Robert Garrigus and Bo van Pelt, who like McNeill are combining good iron play with superior putting.
Looks like it might not be so windy Sunday, which may raise the birdie count, although drying greens could even that out. Overall McNeill has the best record of the leaders on Summerlin this week and it looks like he’ll have to drop shots to lose. Maybe that is very unlikely, but it wouldn’t be the week’s first surprise.

Now you’ll have to excuse me while I go back to an engrossing match play.