NEWS
Sowards, Borchert, Olsen share lead in Event No. 4 of PGA Tournament Series
PORT ST. LUCIE — Matt Borchert and Dan Olsen each qualified for a major championship this year.
They hope to use that experience in Tuesday’s final round of Event No. 4 of the PGA Tournament Series. They’ll need it because they are tied with Bob Sowards, who won Event No. 3 and ranks sixth on the all-time list with nine victories. They each shot 4-under 68s on the Dye Course at PGA Golf Club.
Olsen, who qualified for the Senior British Open and was paired with Scott McCarron and Nick Faldo, said one lesson stood out for him.
“I watched McCarron not miss a shot and I learned you can be the best in your life in your 50s,” said Olsen, 51, a PGA Professional at Quail Creek Country Club in Robinson, Ill. “I’m going to try and be the best I can be in my 50s. Whether that means I’ll win (Tuesday), I don’t know.”
MORE: Scoring for Event No. 4 of the PGA Tournament Series
Borchert, who qualified for this year’s PGA Championship and for the 2016 U.S. Open, said he tries not to grind as much on the golf course as he did while playing professionally for 13 years. Borchert, 41, took a job at Isleworth Golf and Country Club — Tiger Woods’ old course — six years ago and concentrates on teaching.
“I have to remind myself it’s not my living anymore,” Borchert said. “I don’t put as much time into practice as I used to. I try to enjoy being on the golf course and competing. That’s what we all want to do. I kind of lost sight of that.”
Sowards, who outdueled Olsen to win the Senior PGA Professional Championship at PGA Golf Club in October, shot a 5-under 31 on the front nine before cooling off.
Borchert birdied his first two holes and closed with two more on his last three holes. He had three bogeys and three birdies in between.
“The bogeys I made were kind of silly,” Borchert said. “I probably could have shot a really low round if I cleaned up some silly mistakes. I putted well and managed to get around the course without any penalty shots.”
Olsen was 4-under after 10 holes. He made three birdies, a bogey and a double bogey on his last eight holes.
“I had a lot of offense,” said Olsen, who finished tied for fifth at the Senior PGA Professional Championship.
Rich Berberian, the 2016 PGA Professional Player of the Year, is fourth with a 70. He overcame bogeys on his first two holes and a double bogey on the par-4 15th hole with an eagle at the par-5 seventh and four birdies for his 70. Omar Uresti is fifth with a 71.
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