Theegala and Yellamaraju move to tied-seventh at Houston Open

Houston (Texas), March 29 (IANS) Sahith Theegala and Sudarshan Yellamaraju moved up to Tied-7 at the end of the third round at the Houston Open on the PGA Tour.

Indo-Canadian Yellamaraju carded 5-under 65 in the third round and Theegala carded 4-under 66 as both have a total score of 10-under par going into the final day.

Theegala (67-67-66) made five birdies and one bogey in his third round. The birdies came on the third, fifth, 10th, 13th and 17th holes. The sole bogey of the round was made on the eighth hole.

Yellamaraju (69-66-65) who had a strong week at the Players Championship (T-5) made seven birdies and two bogeys in his third round. He made birdies on the third, fourth, fifth, 14th, 15th, 16th and 18th holes. The two bogeys were made on the sixth and ninth holes.

Former US Open winner Gary Woodland carded a third round of 5-under 65 to enter the final day with a one stroke lead into the final round. His current score stands at 18-under par after carding rounds of 64-63-65.

In second place is Nicolai Højgaard, who carded the low round of the week (8-under 62) on the second day to move into second place.

Hojgaard carded a round 7-under 63 on the third day to put himself one stroke behind the leader at 17-under par with one round left to play.

Woodland, who has been outspoken about his struggles with mental health, will be looking to secure his first win since his surgery for a brain lesion. Woodland last won an event back in 2019 when he claimed the U.S. Open.

Woodland stated after the second round that he has been feeding off the energy off the crowd.

After the third round Woodland said, “I’ve just got to take a deep breath, I’ll have a good night ahead of me tonight to recover and rest, and tomorrow just don’t get ahead of yourself. I’m here, I put myself in this position for a reason, so take a deep breath and maintain what I’m doing.”

The win this week is the only chance Woodland has if he wants to qualify for the Master’s that is scheduled in two weeks.

Hojgaard, who is in second place needs a strong finish to hold onto his OWGR rank of 47 and keep his Masters spot while defending champion Min Woo Lee (68-63-67), who is currently in third place at 12-under par, is assured of his entry to the Masters.

–IANS

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