KJ Choi in contention @ Traveller’s

June 21, 2014. The Travelers Championship is poised for an intriguing finish on Sunday. KJ Choi scored a 69 in the third round to keep himself in contention, just two off the leader. The Korean, in his sixth start at the tournament, had never finished better than T-18 (2003) at the TPC River Highlands. Choi made consecutive 65s in the first two rounds, but had to content himself with a 69 on Saturday. Ryan Moore was the leader going into the final round, at 13-under 197.

Aussie Aaron Bradley was second after making 65 in the third round. Alongside Choi in third were three other men – Sergio Garcia (65), Scott Langley and Michael Puttnam. Chad Campbell leads a group of seven men at 9-under, ensuring that we deal with a crammed pack of front runners on Sunday.

The 44 year old Korean made five birdies on Saturday, but as he has in the past two rounds, sullied his score with a string of bogeys. Choi started his round with a bogey on the par-four first hole, before adding another at the par-3 eighth.

If he harbours any hope for a first title at the Travelers, Choi will need a far more consistent performance on Sunday. He has given away eight shots this week – with six bogeys and a double bogey through the first three rounds.

There are also two other Koreans who have made the cut at the Travelers Championship – Seung-Yul Noh and Sang-Moon Bae. The latter is at 8-under 202 (67-68-67) among a group of six men with the same score.

Noh is further back after giving away two strokes in the third round. His score of 209 (68-69-72) through Saturday was only good enough to leave him tied in 67^th. With the cut on Friday falling at 1-under, Y E Yang missed the boat after only managing par scores in the first two rounds.

Danny Lee also missed the cut after making 72 and 69. Japanese Ryo Ishikawa was also caught in the net after a disappointing 73 in the second round. Charlie Wi and Ryuji Imada also failed to make the benchmark.

Choi will be the centre of Asian attention on Sunday. The Korean will start his final round in the second last group with Sergio Garcia. The 34 year old Spaniard surged into contention by jumping ten places with a 65 that was buttressed by four birdies on the back nine.

Reporting and Editing by Anand Datla
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