Keegan Bradley (-14), closing a great round of 63 strokes with two birdies in his last two holes, and Grayson Murray (-14), after a round without bogeys, with four birdies and an eagle, share the lead in the Sony Open in Hawaii with only 18 holes ahead. But as was evident during the ‘moving day’ at the Waialae Country Club, to win the first regular tournament of the year on the PGA Tour, after last week’s champions event, will not be easy and will require prevailing in a thrilling race in which more than 20 players could have options, located within a margin of five strokes.
In fact, this Saturday, up to 10 of the participants in this Honolulu event shared the first place at some point during their round. A day of alternatives that left Sam Stevens (-13) as the main pursuer of the leaders and, after a small gap of one stroke, up to five golfers three strokes away, a more than recoverable distance, tied for fourth place: the Canadian Ben Silverman (-11), the American Chris Kirk (-11), the South Korean Byeong Hun An (-11), the French Matthieu Pavon (-11) and the Japanese Taiga Semikawa (-11).
All over it.@Keegan_Bradley | @SonyOpenHawaii pic.twitter.com/bqHz7sHVEt
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 14, 2024
Pavon, who co-led the tournament in this third round, is making his debut with the circuit card he earned after finishing last season on the DP World Tour among the top 10 players in the Race to Dubai who did not have playing rights on the American tour. A sensational debut that places him as the best European so far, ahead of Stephan Jaeger (-9), Tyrrell Hatton (-8) and Alex Noren (-8). Semikawa, for his part, is confirming the good feelings he has been showing since he turned professional in 2022, with four victories already on the Japan Tour.
The Japanese was the Number One amateur in the world, works with the same representation agency that Jon Rahm is part of and is playing this week in Hawaii with a sponsor’s invitation. He is one of the 21 golfers on the Japan Tour named Taiga (pronounced like Tiger) and, in his case, with a golf-related story behind it: “I was named after Tiger Woods and in a way I adopted his way of playing. I grew up watching his aggressive style and I think it fits my personality, so I try to reproduce it in my own game”.
Named after a legend.
Sitting T4, 23-year-old Taiga Semikawa will continue to draw inspiration from Tiger Woods in his final round tomorrow @SonyOpenHawaii. pic.twitter.com/V7Qr91WmI3
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 14, 2024
This Sunday, just three days after celebrating his 23rd birthday, he will have 18 holes ahead to try to make a real ‘splash’ fighting for a victory that would radically change his professional situation. Although for that he will have to overcome, among others, players like Kirk, who just won the Sentry last week and is looking for the Hawaiian double, Bradley, six-time winner on the PGA Tour and who has two wins in less than a year and a half, and Murray, a raw talent who had to struggle with alcohol and depression problems.
“Obviously, I know what I’m talking about when it comes to alcohol consumption. But now I’ve been sober for over eight months. I have a beautiful fiancée who I love and parents who support me a lot. Everything is easier right now when I’m against the ropes and everyone in my circle is pulling for me. They are there fighting hand in hand with me when I have hard days, which I still suffer, but now I feel much more at peace on the golf course”, confessed Grayson. A story of overcoming addictions that he will try to leave behind with his second victory, after the Barbasol in the 2016-17 season.
