The PGA Tour’s Cognizant Classic will be extended to a Monday finish due to heavy rain disrupting the final round, causing Shane Lowry to fall three strokes off the pace.
Play was halted at 12.49pm local time on Sunday (5.49pm GMT) at PGA National, just before the final group of Lowry and England’s David Skinns were set to tee off. The final round didn’t resume for almost three and a half hours.
The delay led to the final group completing only five holes before play was suspended due to darkness at 6.23pm (11.23pm). As a result, 26 players will return on Monday morning to finish their final rounds.
Austin Eckroat holds a one-shot lead over clubhouse leader Erik van Rooyen, with Jake Knapp two shots behind. Lowry is tied-fourth at 12 under as he aims for his first win on American soil.
What happened on Sunday?
Overnight co-leader Eckroat made consecutive birdies from the fourth hole, moving him to 15 under after seven holes and one shot ahead. Van Rooyen birdied eight of his first 11 holes, including his first six, before finishing with a round of 63 after the delay.
“I didn’t feel any more nervous, but I definitely had more time to think for sure,” said Eckroat. “I felt a bit shaky at the start but managed to make some pars. Getting birdies on the 4th and 5th holes was great and put me in a good position.”
Knapp is five under with three holes left, two strokes behind, while Keith Mitchell finished the week on 12 under after a 6-under 65.
Can Shane Lowry produce a comeback and win the Cognizant Classic?
Horschel is on the same score with one hole left, Noren has six holes to play, and Lowry is tied-fourth after a bogey at the par-three fifth.
Skinns, who started tied for the lead, is now four shots behind after two bogeys in his first three holes, joining Martin Laird on 11 under. McIlroy and Fitzpatrick are a stroke further back after rounds of 67 and 68 respectively.
McIlroy commented on Lowry’s chances of winning, saying: “It would mean a lot. He loves this place and has always performed well here. I’ll be rooting for him and hoping he gets the job done.”
Play will resume at 8am local time on Monday (1pm GMT), with Lowry and Skinns starting their days from the sixth fairway and Eckroat beginning at the eighth hole. Watch the final day of the Cognizant Classic live on Monday from 1pm on Sky Sports Golf.
