Saturday morning started with players hoping the wind would stay at bay, as many saw their scores improve dramatically as the weather conditions changed. Competing on the Adidas TERREX course yesterday, it seems that both the MPO and FPO fields had some rollercoaster action. Starting off slow but gaining momentum toward the back nine was the name of moving day’s game.

Round 3 gave the pros a complete perspective of what the Gentlemen’s Club Challenge has to offer, as they have now competed on all three courses. Like the saying goes, you can’t make everyone happy all of the time, and there were varying reviews on which layouts had room for improvement.

Mental Games Came Back Strong

Comfort with their play seems to be slowly building as each day passes, and many players expressed being happier with their rounds on Saturday than on previous days. Dude ambassador Zoe AnDyke saw a distinct difference in her mental game yesterday, noting it was a vast improvement over Friday’s round: “I never let down necessarily but I didn’t throw with heart. I didn’t throw with belief. I just went through the motions. I lost the heart in the middle of the round, and you can see it on my scorecard.”

For those who made the cut, it seems the prevailing attitude is that there’s nothing to lose in the last round. Cameron Messerschmidt played his best round of the three on the Innova course, and is looking forward to seeing how the final round plays out: “[My] game plan is just to go for more things on the Innova course, just try to be more aggressive and get more looks so I can move up the leaderboard.”

A Frame Of Reference For The Courses

Similar to sentiments after Friday’s round, competitors gained a complete perspective on what Las Vegas did right, and where things went amiss. FPO players seemed frustrated with the Innova course; Erika Stinchcomb commented that it’s just too long for her, and AnDyke seemed to echo those thoughts. When asked where the GCC could make changes, she vocalized: “I would say that adjusting the pars to be a little bit more correct [is needed] so that we’re not catering to the top five players in the whole sport.”

On the other hand, this inaugural NT garnered a lot of positive feedback as well. Despite her frustration with the Innova course, Stinchcomb was appreciative of this year’s layout: “These are amazing courses and it’s cool to see the bump of how many more people are here. I think it’s accommodating everyone really well.”

Players Look Ahead To Next Weekend

Despite having one more round to complete the 2017 Gentlemen’s Club Challenge, there’s quite a buzz stirring about next week’s competition at The Memorial. While it and the GCC go hand in hand as the start of every tour season, people seem to be exceptionally excited to play in Arizona.

Feeling confident in his game, Jeremy Koling is particularly excited to be competing again after an illness in Australia kept him from the Aussie Open. “We’re all so happy to be back on tour now. This time of the season is always magical to see everyone’s faces and see the excitement in the air,” Koling said.

Many are considering GCC to be a warm-up to the Memorial, so while the pressure is on for some to make some big moves during the final round, others are just happy to be easing back into tour life.

The lead card on Sunday’s round boasts five players, including Dude’s Eagle McMahon who ended Saturday’s round with an eagle on hole 18. You can follow live scoring during today’s event by visiting pdgalive.com.

Written by Courtney Elder