Rocket Mortgage: Sensational novice Luke Clanton appears to be like to make historical past

Florida State sophomore Luke Clanton burst onto the scene Saturday on the Rocket Mortgage Basic as he posted the rating to beat.

He signed for a 7-under 65 to sit down at 14-under and only a few photographs behind the leaders.

Clanton recorded six birdies, an eagle and one bogey on the day. He was 5-under via 11 holes earlier than he dropped a shot on the twelfth.

“We stayed tremendous calm and tremendous within the technique of what we’ve been doing,” Clanton mentioned after his spherical on Saturday.

“I feel that’s one factor I’ve been scuffling with the final couple of months is just not getting forward of my recreation and looking out into the longer term, however right this moment, I feel we did such a great job of not making an attempt to drive the birdies on the market, however we simply stayed actually in our course of right this moment.”

By means of three rounds, Clanton leads the sector in strokes gained off the tee with +4.378. He’s additionally No. 7 in strokes gained placing, choosing up +4.346 on the remainder of the sector.

Nonetheless, in Saturday’s spherical alone, he leads in strokes gained off the tee (+1.491), placing (3.801) and whole (+4.712).

His flat stick was phenomenal because the Seminole golfer made 117 toes of putts in the course of the third spherical. Nonetheless, his eagle on 14 was a veteran-like shot that confirmed what sort of guts he has.

“I smoked a driver method down there, and that was in all probability one of many tougher ones I hit all day,” he mentioned. “Had the proper 5-iron quantity with left-to-right wind. I checked out Jason and mentioned this might be actually good if I hit this good, and I flushed it. I mentioned, “Be the proper membership,” and he mentioned it. Hit it shut and tapped in for eagle, so it was fairly candy.”

His 7-under 65 put him proper into rivalry to win a PGA Tour occasion. Can the 20-year-old make historical past this week? He made the reduce on the U.S. Open and completed tied for forty first. Clanton was the second-lowest novice behind Neal Shipley, who made his skilled PGA Tour debut this week.

“To have the ability to be out right here and even say I’m in rivalry to win a PGA TOUR occasion’s fairly nuts. It’s fairly cool, man,” he mentioned.

“I shot 7 below right this moment, it was wonderful, however we may have made a pair extra birdies on the market. My recreation plan has been the identical all week, pound driver as exhausting as I can, get it down there and make just a few putts — it’s been good.”

The final novice to win on the PGA Tour was Nick Dunlap, who received the American Specific in January. He grew to become the first novice since Phil Mickelson in 1991 to win on Tour.

Photograph by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Photos

Now, Clanton appears to be like so as to add his identify to the historical past books.

“Me and Nick go method again so it’s superior to see him try this,” Clanton mentioned. “It’s cool, man. I feel amateurs now, we’re so good. I feel a variety of guys have nice probabilities of successful out right here and to be in rivalry with sooner or later to go is fairly candy.”

The Florida State sophomore had top-of-the-line springs with three consecutive victories on the Seminole Intercollegiate, the Valspar Collegiate Invitational and the Lewis Chitengwa Memorial.

Clanton recorded 10 top-10 finishes in 14 tournaments this previous season, and he completed at par or much less in 30 of his 40 rounds. He’s at present ranked No. 6 within the World Newbie Golf rating system.

If the Ben Hogan semifinalist wins on Sunday, will probably be the primary time in 79 years that two amateurs have received on the PGA Tour. Cary Middlecoff and Fred Haas had been the final to win in the identical season in 1945.

Clanton will doubtless be in one of many last teams on Sunday, as his 65 pushed him 22 spots up the leaderboard.

Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf workers author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By means of. For extra golf protection, comply with us @_PlayingThrough on all main social platforms. You can even comply with her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.