FORT WORTH, Texas — PGA Tour rookie Harry Hall intended to slip on his Vegas Golden Knights jersey while playing Colonial’s par-3 13th hole Sunday (PH time), May 28, 2023. That plan changed after falling out of the lead because of consecutive double bogeys.
It was only after finishing the third round back in a share of the lead, with Adam Schenk at 10-under 200, that the Englishman who lives in Las Vegas after playing at UNLV pulled on the jersey. His favorite NHL team was playing the local Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.
“Being 3 over going into the (13th) hole, I didn’t think that would be the best thing to do,” said Hall, who was the solo leader after the first and second rounds. “Yeah, I’m T1 after the round, so I thought I’d wear it in the interviews.”
Hall’s final putt in a round of 2-over 72 was a 10-foot par at No. 18 after he chipped from the fringe out of an awkward stance that had his heels hanging over the lip of a bunker. That followed a 10-foot birdie at the 383-yard 17th.
Schenk, also looking for his first win but in his 171st PGA Tour event, closed out a 67 with a 16-foot birdie putt.
“It was a lot of luck making that putt. It was a foot and a half of break and extremely fast,” he said.
The 31-year-old Indiana native was the runner-up at the Valspar Championship in mid-March, but has since missed four cuts and tied for 31st at the RBC Heritage. He hit 11 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens while recording only one bogey Sunday.
Harris English, who shot a 70 in the final group with Hall, was a stroke back at 9-under 201 after his bogey on 18, when an 8-foot par chance curled just by the cup. That was two holes after he had sole possession of the lead with a 40-foot birdie on the par-3 16th.
Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the world and the Colonial runner-up last year, bogeyed three of his last five holes for a 72 after opening with consecutive 67s. He was among six players tied for 10th place at 4 under.