Posted by Jason Sobel
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- I was standing by the third green Saturday afternoon when Carl Pettersson nearly holed his tee shot on the par-3.
Just moments later, a raucous ovation erupted from the nearby second hole, about 200 yards away. This was no "he-got-it-close" celebration or "nice-putt" applause. It wasn't a birdie, wasn't even an eagle. The emotional outburst -- a few hundred fans acting as one -- was at first shock, then appreciation, building to a crescendo as the ball was engulfed by the hole.
As word filtered down like a game of Telephone, my suspicions were confirmed, and I learned that Peter Lonard had made double-eagle to move from three back to a share of the early third-round lead at 6-under.
Pettersson, meanwhile, went from almost acing the hole (I still have no idea how it didn't hit the bottom of the flagstick) to making a two-putt par and staying at 6-under for the time being.
The moral of the story is that things can move pretty fast out here on the PGA Tour. Usually when professional golfers talk about a "quick swing," they're describing an unfortunate pull-hook off the tee. But quick swings can -- and do -- happen on the leaderboard, too.
It's the very reason why the name of Jeff Quinney, who teed off nearly three hours before the leaders and carded a tournament-best 8-under 64, could be seen fluctuating up and down on the leaderboard while the player himself was nonchalantly hitting one-handed chip shots and speaking on his cell phone under the late-afternoon sun.
Quinney eventually finished the day with a share of third place (with Lonard), two strokes behind leader Sean O'Hair.
Meanwhile, did anyone out there even pay attention to guys like Jose Coceres or J.P. Hayes during the first two days? I doubt it, but both of those players are in contention entering the final round.
Expect more unpredictable circumstances Sunday. Take a good look at the leaderboard before the top guys tee off. Some of 'em will, obviously, remain in contention throughout the day. Others will make a few early bogeys and shoot themselves out of it. And then even others, players you may not have even seen one shot from all week, could pull a Quinney, shooting a low number, then sitting back and watching their names rise up the leaderboard late in the day.
Expect some quick swings on the final-round Players leaderboard and, when the pressure starts to hit, expect some quick swings on the course, too.
