Cam Smith has continued his resurgence on the Australian Open with two early birdies within the third spherical on Saturday.
After lacking the minimize on the Australia PGA Championship in Brisbane, Smith has moved to inside one shot of the lead at Royal Melbourne.
Smith has birdied holes one and three at present to maneuver to -9.
LEADERBOARD: Australian Open dwell scores
He’s been on a tear because the twelfth gap yesterday. He’s recorded birdie in six of his final 9 holes and 4 of his final six.
On the quick par 4 third, Smith’s second shot out of the bunker was a factor of magnificence, placing it inside three ft.
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AUSSIE YOUNG GUN LIGHTS UP ROYAL MELBOURNE
World No. 740 Jack Buchanan has been the largest mover in Spherical 3, with the Aussie lighting up Royal Melbourne on Saturday to report a seven beneath 64 to rocket into rivalry.
Buchanan will begin Spherical 4 on seven beneath par and only a few pictures off the lead.
It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for the 23-year-old, who gained entry onto the 2026 DP World Tour final month after a gruelling qualifying schedule in what’s a large leap ahead within the younger gun’s skilled journey.
Sitting simply above the minimize line on the finish of Spherical 2, Buchanan is now a dwell hope of lifting the Stonehaven Cup on Sunday afternoon.
Buchanan felt early on Saturday that it was going to be a superb day.
“I holed a 20-footer downhill and as quickly as that went in I used to be like, yeah, I’m on at present,” Buchanan instructed foxsports.com.au.
“As quickly as I made the minimize I used to be fairly stoked and I knew that I used to be enjoying adequate to go low at present.
“I believe I can nonetheless go low tomorrow. I believe the way in which they set the course up at present is fairly robust on some pins you could handle your ball properly.
“I believe it may be a type of ones the place you both go seven beneath otherwise you go over par in case you don’t handle your ball correctly.”
BANANA PEEL THWARTS RORY
Extra info has come to mild about Rory McIlroy’s double bogey on the 2nd gap – and it needs to be seen to be believed.
McIlroy’s wayward drive on two landed on a banana peel which had been tossed right into a tea tree.
Golfers are allowed to maneuver free impediments so long as the participant’s ball doesn’t transfer within the course of. If the ball had shifted on account of making an attempt to maneuver a free merchandise, the participant is slapped with a penalty.
As an alternative, McIlroy took his medication and hit off the banana peel. It was at all times going to be fraught with hazard although with McIlroy’s ball travelling simply ten metres.
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SMITH HUNTS REDEMPTION
Cameron Smith is again in enterprise and has the Australian Open firmly in his sights forward of what guarantees to be an interesting third spherical at Royal Melbourne.
Rory McIlroy will tee off slightly sooner than he would have appreciated – at 9.39am – as he tries to make up floor on the leaders, beginning the weekend seven pictures off the tempo at -2.
Whereas later within the day, all eyes can be on celebrity Australian trio Smith, Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee, who will all begin the day inside two pictures of the lead.
Lee (-8) will head out within the ultimate group alongside in a single day leaders Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen and Daniel Rodrigues (-9), whereas Smith and Scott (-7) are within the group prior together with Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz.
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Smith not solely surged into rivalry with a bogey free, six-under par 65 on Friday, but additionally snapped a streak of seven straight missed cuts in world rating occasions.
The LIV star missed the weekend in any respect 4 majors this 12 months, in addition to in his hometown of Brisbane finally week’s Australian PGA Championship, however appeared to have turned the nook at Royal Melbourne and he’s not glad with merely making up the numbers.
“Yeah, it’s positively a aid, however I’m not right here to make the minimize. I’m right here to win the Stonehaven Cup and I’ve put myself in a great place to try this, so actually pleased with that,” Smith instructed reporters at Royal Melbourne on Friday.
The string of poor outcomes have definitely been disheartening for the 2022 Open champion, however he believes he could now reap the rewards for persevering with the push by way of the robust occasions on the course.
“Yeah, I’d like to think about myself as a reasonably gritty participant,” Smith mentioned.
“The best way how issues have been going, that grittiness simply will get knocked out faster when one thing goes mistaken or you may have a little bit of a foul stretch of holes.
“However it was good to try this. It was good to gap a number of par putts, good par putts to maintain the momentum going. Simply holed a number of putts actually to maintain the momentum up.”
The spectacular crowds have been a serious speaking level of the primary two rounds of the Australian Open, and with tickets offered out for the weekend, Rory mania is just not able to die down.
Which means Finland’s Tapio Pulkkanen and England’s James Morrison, who’re grouped with McIlroy, are set for an unforgettable day, in entrance of crowds they might have dreamt of enjoying in entrance of.
The published of the third spherical begins on Fox Sports activities and Kayo at 11am AEDT.
The Whiff & The Miracle – Rory Reacts | 01:24
AUSTRALIAN OPEN ROUND 3 TEE TIMES (AEDT)
07:09
LAMB, Corey
MARCHESANI, James
07:17
SENDEN, John
GUMBERG, Jordan
GIRRBACH, Joel
07:28
LUCK, Curtis
OGILVY, Geoff
FITZPATRICK, Alex
07:39
BAUTISTA, Austin
BARBIERI, Nathan
FOLLETT-SMITH, Benjamin
07:50
BUCHANAN, Jack
JONSSON, Tobias
MOUNTCASTLE, Kerry
08:01
JOHN, Cameron
COCKERILL, Aaron
SENIOR, Jack
08:12
PAUL, Yannik
HENKEL, Ben
RUMFORD, Brett
08:28
MCKINNEY, Connor
VIDAL, Quim
VOKE, Nick
08:39
MUNOZ, Sebastian
BARRON, Haydn
COUSSAUD, Ugo
08:50
WILLIAMS, Robin
REPETTO TAYLOR, Rocco
ADAM, Cameron
09:01
ALLAN, Stephen
HISATSUNE, Ryo
LAW, David
09:12
GARCIA, Sebastian
MORGAN, Jediah
CROCKER, Sean
09:23
LANGASQUE, Romain
SATO, Kaito
HODGE, Tyler
09:39
MCILROY, Rory
PULKKANEN, Tapio
MORRISON, James
09:50
MAZZOLI, Stefano
VAILLANT, Tom
LEANEY, Stephen
10:01
ANCER, Abraham
HERBERT, Lucas
SCRIVENER, Jason
10:12
YOUNG, Daniel
LEISHMAN, Marc
GREEN, Richard
10:23
CHALMERS, Greg
MCCARTY, Matt
MCLEOD, Jake
10:34
BRYANT, Davis
HOLLICK, Michael
WIESBERGER, Bernd
10:55
DAVIS, Cam
SMYLIE, Elvis
CHARMASSON, Clement
11:06
ORMSBY, Wade
BALLESTER, Jose Luis
SURRATT, Caleb
11:17
CABRERA BELLO, Rafa
DING, Wenyi
HILLIER, Daniel
11:28
APHIBARNRAT, Kiradech
KIM, Si Woo
FOX, Ryan
11:39
SMITH, Cam
SCOTT, Adam
ORTIZ, Carlos
11:50
LEE, Min Woo
RODRIGUES, Daniel
NEERGAARD-PETERSEN, Rasmus