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Pierce, Allen Catch Up to Hokom, Williams Alone at the Top

Pierce, Allen Catch Up to Hokom, Williams Alone at the Top

By: Marty Gregwah #28647
Sunday, June 26, 2016 - 08:52

With roughly half the field cut after Round 3 of the 2016 Vibram Open, those remaining can rest easy knowing they’ll walk away with some cash. However, for the elite few in the hunt for the title, the final round is the most nerve-racking and intense. To be towards the top of the leaderboard after three days at Maple Hill is an accomplishment in itself. But for many, being at the top only matters if at the end of the day they walk away a Vibram Open champion.

Starting the third round as the leader once again in the Open Women’s division after playing precise, consistent golf was Sarah Hokom #34563. Catrina Allen #44184 and Val Jenkins #17495 were right on her heels, three off the lead with Paige Pierce #29190 another three behind to round out the lead card. Three days in a row of nearly flawless golf is a tall order at Maple Hill, and Saturday’s Round 3 proved to be the day that the course sought revenge on Sarah.

Sarah began the round just as she had in the days prior, picking up birdies and pars on the densely wooded holes of the front nine. In an all-too-common story at Maple Hill, the back nine is where things started to fall apart. A few bad throws or even a few instances of bad luck can start a chain reaction, no pun intended, in which Maple Hill begins tearing apart one’s mental game.

It was Hole 12 specifically where things took a turn for the worse. Pars by both Paige and Catrina against Sarah’s double-bogey on the long and tricky par 4 meant Sarah’s lead had been reduced to just one. Another bogey on Hole 13 meant the three of them were now tied for the lead, and unfortunately for Sarah, it didn’t stop there.

Par putt by Catrina Allen on Hole 13.

They continued to battle for the last five holes, and at the end of the day there would be two new leaders, Catrina Allen and Paige Pierce, who are now tied in first place, with Sarah one back. A frustrating day for Val Jenkins leaves her seven back from Sarah as we head into the finals this morning.

It wasn’t until much later in the afternoon that we saw the Open division lead card take to the tee, with a three-way tie for first between Devan Owens #25168, Bradley Williams #31644, and Michael Johansen #20300, joined by Nate Sexton #18824 just one off the lead. A slew of cards beneath them were filled with players all well within striking range, including Cale Leiviska #24341 on the chase card who began the round tied with Nate Sexton.

Bradley, Michael, and Nate came out swingin’, with Bradley at four under par through the first five holes and Michael and Nate at three under. Cale followed suit on the chase card, also sitting at three under par through the first five, knocking Devan down in the rankings right out of the gate.

Bradley Williams slow-mo drive off the tee of Hole 6.

Through the middle of the course the men played pretty evenly, with no one making any big moves. Intensely focused, all they could do was keep playing their game and push on, hoping to avoid the collapse that so many others experience at Maple Hill. It was the last few holes where everything started to shake out.

Bradley and Michael had been trading the lead all afternoon, heading into Hole 16 with Michael in the lead by one after a parked drive on Hole 15. Perfect drives by both on the 530’ par 3 of Hole 16 left them both with impressive birdies inside the circle, a feat that is difficult to explain without actually seeing the hole for yourself.

On the crowd-filled 18th, Michael’s upshot missed the island green, giving Bradley a chance to take the lead. Bradley had already laid up to outside the island for a long birdie chance in front of the grandstand. And then…

Bradley Williams hit a long birdie putt on Hole 18 to take the lead.

Cale’s round of eight under par means he and Michael are now tied in second place one off the new leader Bradley Williams. Devan’s strong finish on the back nine allowed him to remain on the lead card for the finals, with Ricky Wysocki #38008 and Alex Geisinger #52063 just two throws behind him on the chase card. Ricky carded the hot round yesterday, shooting a ridiculous bogey-free 10 under par (50).

Live scores and stats begin on pdgalive.com and udisclive.com at 9:00am EDT. The live streaming coverage begins at 3:00pm EDT on the Disc Golf Pro Tour YouTube channel. Follow along as the best players in the world take on one of the best courses in the world at the 2016 Vibram Open Finals!

Pictures from the week are available for viewing and/or downloading on the PDGA Flickr page. See you at Maple Hill! 

 

2016 Vibram Open, Maple Hill, Disc Golf Pro Tour