His birdie on the par-4 17th put him at 8 under, level with Spieth’s record, and then the 46-year-old Australian made a 60-foot eagle putt on the 18th to break the mark.
Advertisement
Matt Jones continues to lead the Emirates Australian Open following the third round played today at The Australian Golf Club in Sydney.
Rhein Gibson is five shots behind Jones following his 68.
Jordan Spieth overcame a disastrous start to finish eagle-birdie and move into second place in the Australian Open. “I just didn’t know what to hit and I ended up two clubs off, thinking the wind was helping when it was actually hurting”.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke is nine shots off the pace on a a card of 70. “Today there was only a couple of holes – maybe one and two and one on the back nine – that wasn’t straight sideways”. Spieth lamented the crosswinds that ravaged the course again on Friday, depositing what he thought were good shots well off his intended target.
“I’m playing to a strategy I have”, he said.
Spieth had a roller-coaster of a front nine in which he bogeyed three of his first four holes and birdied the next two before finishing the front nine with a bogey and a birdie – just two pars going out.
“I feel like I’ve still got the best golf yet to be played – that’s what’s positive”, the American said. “That’s what I’m going with”. “Great fight back, one of the best fought rounds I’ve had that I can remember”.
The 29-year-old from Victoria came through The Open Qualifying Series at the Emirates Australian Open in 2013 to secure a place in The 143 Open at Royal Liverpool, where he finished 72nd.
“One more day to go, I get to play with him; be no better person to beat on the final day and have him in the group with me”.
Scott three-putted twice for bogeys and failed to make a birdie, making more remote his chances of extending a streak of winning at least one tournament a year since 2001.
Advertisement
“When it went up the hill and started tracking, it was just a little bit right of the hole and then I didn’t pick it and it just sort of snuck a bit left, so I was very happy to see it go left and at ideal speed”.
