MONTREAL: Italian veteran Matteo Manassero was poised to challenge for his first US PGA Tour title after conjuring seven birdies in a six-under par 64 to share the 54-hole lead at the Canadian Open with New Zealand’s Ryan Fox.
Fox also fired seven birdies and a bogey at TPC Toronto Osprey Valley, their 14-under par total of 196 putting the leaders one stroke clear atop a congested leaderboard, with 22 more players within four strokes of the lead.
On a day when as many as 11 players shared the lead at one point, Manassero was the first to reach 14-under with his sixth birdie of the day at the 15th.
He bogeyed 17, where he was in the left rough off the tee and missed a four-footer to save par, but he birdied the par-five 18th.
“It was a really good round,” Manassero said. “I missed the short one on 17, and I did miss a couple more short ones today. I try to think of them just like a shot really, like a driver, like a six-iron, whatever. It’s just a shot.
“It wasn’t that hard for me to stay focused into what I was doing and not ruining (it) at the end.”
Manassero, a five-time winner on the DP World Tour, is seeking his first US tour title. The 32-year-old Italian has revived his career after briefly walking away from the game in the midst of a prolonged slump. He claimed his first DP World Tour victory in more than a decade in March of 2024.
“It’s definitely made me more mature and much better perspective toward golf, which at one point was everything,” he said of the ups and downs of his career. “I have a better perspective toward, for example, a day like tomorrow.”
Fox, 38, is aiming to build off his first US PGA Tour title, captured in a playoff at the Myrtle Beach Classic last month.
He launched his round with three straight birdies and had five on the front nine, bouncing back from a bogey at 11 — where he was in the water — with birdies at 12 and 18.
“To be honest, everything went pretty right,” Fox said. “I drove it great. I think, if you do that round here, you give yourself lots of chances.
“Had a lot of good wedge shots, holed a few putts early. Just played really solid kind of stress-free golf for the most part.”
Americans Lee Hodges and Mat McCarty and Taiwan’s Kevin Yu were tied for third on 13-under 197.
Hodges bookended his seven-under 63 with eagles at the first and 18th, with three birdies in between.
Yu had eight birdies and a bogey in his 63 while McCarty had seven birdies in his 64.
Canadian Mackenzie Hughes and Americans Jake Knapp and Andrew Putnam were tied on 12-under, one stroke clear of a group of seven players on 11-under 199.
Ireland’s Shane Lowry headlined a group of nine players on 200.
Fox said his victory last month had him feeling “more comfortable in my own shoes,” but he with so many within striking distance he said that Sunday promised to be a shoot-out.
“Obviously there’s a lot of good players behind me,” he said. “I feel like it’s going to take a pretty low (score) to get the job done.”
Manassero, Fox share PGA Canadian Open lead with plenty in pursuit
https://arab.news/w23c9
Manassero, Fox share PGA Canadian Open lead with plenty in pursuit
- Manassero, a five-time winner on the DP World Tour, is seeking his first US tour title
Patriots reach Super Bowl in blizzard-hit 10-7 win over Broncos
LOS ANGELES, US: Quarterback Drake Maye led the New England Patriots to their first Super Bowl appearance since the glory days of predecessor Tom Brady with a blizzard-ravaged 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos Sunday.
In a low-scoring AFC Championship game played out in brutal conditions, Maye rushed for a first-half touchdown, and painstakingly drove the ball downfield after the break to set up a decisive field goal.
No further scoring was possible in the 21 degrees F storm, with the Patriots’ white uniforms barely visible as players slipped and slid across the snow.
“We battled the elements,” said Maye.
“These conditions, it’s not great throwing the football. But hey, we do what we need to do... We’re off to the Super Bowl. Let’s go!“
The Patriots will play either the Los Angeles Rams or the Seattle Seahawks at Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, California, on February 8.
The win cements a remarkable resurgence for the Patriots.
After the dominant era of the Brady dynasty that yielded six Super Bowl titles, New England have endured a painful rebuild, going 3-14 in both the previous two seasons.
But under new head coach Mike Vrabel they were a revelation this season, winning 17 games so far and topping the tough AFC East for the first time since 2019.
‘Costly’
Prior to kickoff, all eyes were on the Broncos’ perennial backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who had not thrown a pass in competitive football for two years.
The 29-year-old was thrust into the spotlight when Broncos’ first-choice Bo Nix broke his ankle in the dying moments of last weekend’s victory over the Buffalo Bills.
An understandably nervy Stidham was swiftly and repeatedly blitzed by the Patriots, throwing a wild incomplete pass on an opening drive that ended with a punt.
Moments later his epic 54-yard hurl to Marvin Mims Jr paid off spectacularly, caught deep downfield. Stidham then found Courtland Sutton for the opening TD.
Stidham grew in confidence as the first half progressed, without adding to the lead. The Broncos declined a straightforward field goal attempt at 4th&1 on New England’s 14-yard line, and gave up a turnover on downs.
Then disaster struck, as Stidham fumbled on the Broncos’ 14-yard line for a turnover. Maye, who had been struggling badly, rushed for a touchdown and a 7-7 half-time score.
The fumble would prove “costly,” Broncos head coach Sean Payton admitted after the game.
‘Sick’
The dense snowstorm descended on Denver at the break, making passing difficult and forcing both teams to rely on their run games.
An attritional 18-play drive lasting nearly 10 minutes led to a field goal and slender lead for New England.
The conditions became almost comically treacherous, with multiple players slipping and sliding on nearly every barely-visible play.
Both sides missed multiple field goals in swirling cross-winds, including one blocked by Patriots tackle Leonard Taylor’s fingertips.
With the two-minute warning looming, Stidham attempted a hugely risky 30-yard pass and gave away an interception that proved vital in whiteout conditions.
“It was good at first, and then snow started coming down, wind blowing, I couldn’t see,” said defensive tackle Milton Williams.
“I’m coughing. I’m probably sick right now. But none of that matters. All that matters is that we won the game and we’re going to the Bowl.”
The Patriots, who already boasted the most Super Bowl appearances with 11, will now have their twelfth showing on American football’s biggest stage, and a chance to vie for a record seventh Lombardi trophy.
Vrabel, who won three Super Bowls playing alongside Brady for the Patriots, would be the first person to win the sport’s ultimate prize as a player and coach for the same franchise.
“I won’t win it — it’ll be the players that will win the game, I promise you,” said Vrabel.
