2012 Players Cup
July 12-15, 2012
Winnipeg, MB
Pine Ridge Golf Club (36-35) Par 71
Purse: $150,000
Winner's share: $24,000
Weather
28 degrees Celsius, felt like 32, wind 20 km/h
Third Round Leaderboard (Bold denotes Canadian)
Chris Killmer, Bellingham, WA 66-64-70 (-13)
Vince Covello, Philadelphia, PA 66-68-66 (-13)
Trey Denton, Madison, MISS 68-71-67 (-7)
Matt Makinson, Vancouver, BC 69-68-69 (-7)
David Lang, Toronto, ON 68-68-70 (-7)
Matt Hill, Sarnia, ON 70-67-70 (-6)
Garrett Sapp, Cerritos, CA 67-70-70 (-6)
Matt Richardson, England 69-67-71 (-5)
Darren Wallace, Langley, BC 69-65-74 (-5)
Wes Heffernan, Calgary, BC 69-70-69 (-5)
Jose de Jesus Rodriguez, Mexico 67-70-71 (-5)
8 players tied at 4-under
(July 14, 2012 - Winnipeg, MB) - Bellingham, WA's Chris Killmer and Philadelphia, PA's Vince Covello separated themselves from the field Saturday at the Players Cup, jumping out six shots clear of third place. Covello shot a five-under 66 to erase a four-shot deficit behind Killmer, who shot a one-under 70.
Covello's 66 was the best round of the day by two shots, and tied the 29-year old with Killmer at 13-under par through 54 holes.
The pair will both be looking for their first Canadian Tour victory on Sunday, and will play together with Madison, Mississippi's Trey Denton, who sits at seven-under par with Coquitlam, BC's Matt Makinson and Toronto, ON's David Lang.
"I was lucky enough to get off to a really good start today and I just kept moving forward from there," said Covello who has a 5th and T-6 in the last two Players Cup events. "I've been close the last two years here and played well, and it would be nice to finish things off one of these years," added Covello who will be looking for his first Canadian Tour win tomorrow.
Covello, who now calls Ponte Vedra Beach, FL home, caught up to Killmer in a hurry, making birdie at the first and eagle at the fourth (while Killmer made bogey) to draw even. The two would both play two-under par golf from there on in to separate themselves from the field.
"I calmed myself down. To finish under par today felt good," said Killmer, who began the day with a four shot lead. "It's going to be a fun day. To be a co-leader I'm excited. It's going to be a match play event tomorrow," added Killmer whose best finish on the Canadian Tour since joining in 2011 was a tie for 10th at the 2011 Syncrude Boreal Open.
Makinson, who is playing under a partial medical exemption this season, is in danger of losing his status after missing the last three cuts in row. The new father needs to earn $3,544.26 by the conclusion of The Players Cup in order to reach 90th on last year's money list and keep his status for the remainder of the season. Makinson will need an 11th place showing or better in order to earn that money and currently the 30-year old is well inside that position in a tie for third.
"Every tournament I enter I try to win. If you start thinking about little things this game will eat you up and spit you out," said Makinson, who seems to be cool and collected despite his season being on the line. "If I go into the round and add pressure myself I'm going to hinder myself instead of help. It's so cliche, but I'll take it one shot at a time," added Makinson whose best showing on the Canadian Tour was a T-53 at a joint TLA event in 2011.
Monday qualifier David Lang is making his Canadian Tour debut after winning the qualifier at nearby Elmhurst Golf & Country Club with a 4-under 67. Six days later the rookie professional is six shots back of the lead and set to play in the penultimate group on Sunday.
"I'm really just taking things one shot at a time. I know it sounds cliché but it's been working," said Lang, who plays out of York Downs Golf Club in Toronto. "I actually made the decision to come out here and qualify four days before the deadline and I'm pretty happy I did," added Lang, whose father is caddying for the 25-year old.
Matt Hill of Sarnia, ON has all but secured a spot in the RBC Canadian Open based on his play so far this season. Golf Canada has extended invitations to the top two players on the Order of Merit following the conclusion of The Players Cup. Sitting in second spot currently is Cory Renfrew of Victoria, BC. Renfrew is currently in a tie for 28th and in the drivers seat. The only players that have a realistic chance to usurp Renfrew are Michael Gligic of Burlington, ON and Andrew Roque of Monterey Park, CA. Derek Gillespie of Oshawa, ON is 10 shots off the lead and will need a win to earn one of the spots.
Tee times for Sunday's final round will begin at 7:30 a.m. with play going out on both tees. Canadian Tour officials decided on a split tee based on the forecast slated for thunder showers set to hit the Winnipeg area beginning at 8:00 a.m. and possibly lasting until 5:00 p.m. tomorrow afternoon.
