Two Brits Head into Monday's Final Round atop Honda Classic


After three rounds and part of the fourth, England's Ian Poulter and countryman Paul Casey are tied for the lead at the Honda Classic.

Because of significant suspensions of play due to bad weather both Friday and Saturday, with the latter virtually washed out, the $6.1 million PGA Tour event on the Champion course at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., will have a rare Monday finish.

Poulter carded a 4-under 66 to take the outright 54-hole lead at 9-under 201. Right after completing play, the two - along with the rest of the field - immediately commenced the fourth round.

After getting in seven holes before play was postponed due to darkness, the 39-year-old Poulter had posted a double-bogey, a bogey and a birdie to drop to 7-under and into an overnight tie with Casey.

Casey shot a third-round 68 but tacked on four birdies in his front nine before calling it a day.

"Every hole today was crucial, and every hole that we're going to go and play right now will be," Poulter said before heading out for his final round.

One stroke back at 6-under is Texan Patrick Reed, who shot a third-round 67 and was even-par through seven holes in the last round. Trailing by three are Americans Daniel Berger, Jeff Overton, Phil Mickelson and Brendan Steele and Scotland's Russell Knox.

Padraig Harrington is at 3-under. The three-time major champion was closer to the lead at 6-under following the completion of 54 holes, but dropped three strokes through seven holes of his final round.

On Saturday the course received 5 inches of rain. The weather was so bad that the scoreboard in the lake next to the 18th green was blown over and the Honda vehicle in the same water hazard was partially submerged. Bunkers were flooded and a few trees were tipped over.

Only 24 of the 71 players who made the 36-hole cut completed at least one hole in the third round.

The maintenance crew worked Saturday night and into Sunday morning getting the course in shape before play commenced at 7:00 a.m. They used 12 pumps to get water off the course and had to rebuild the bunkers. According the The Associated Press, the course had so much water that superintendent Lukus Harvey and his crew chased an alligator out of three fairway bunkers to clear out the water, and a few water moccasins were threatening them.

"Makes for an interesting night," Harvey told the AP.

Sunday's weather was much better, and Monday calls for partly sunny skies and temperatures in the low 80s.

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