Lucas Glover carried a bogey-free lead into the ISCO Championship weekend, but Steven Fisk, Stephan Jaeger and Zac Blair turned Saturday into a brawl.
Lucas Glover entered the ISCO Championship weekend with control of the leaderboard. By Saturday afternoon, control had turned into a street fight.
Glover opened the tournament with 36 bogey-free holes at Hurstbourne Country Club, reaching 13 under and taking a two-shot advantage over Chan Kim and Steven Fisk.
It marked the second consecutive week he had avoided a bogey through two rounds after tying for third at the John Deere Classic.
Then the leaderboard started swinging.
Glover briefly lost his grip as Fisk, Stephan Jaeger and Zac Blair launched charges during the third round.
Blair ripped through the front nine with three straight birdies to climb into contention before signing for a 6-under round and a 12-under total.
Jaeger made an even bigger jump. He played the front nine in 3 under, then birdied two of his first three holes after the turn to surge six places and grab a share of the lead.
Glover eventually punched back.
The former U.S. Open champion rolled in a 6-foot eagle putt at the par-5 seventh and added a birdie at No. 10, moving to 14 under and reclaiming sole possession of first place.
Fisk remained in the fight after playing his opening nine holes in 2 under.
The chaos created exactly the kind of weekend the ISCO Championship needed.
With $720,000, 300 FedEx Cup points and a two-year PGA Tour exemption waiting for the winner, every birdie now carries career-changing weight.
Defending champion William Mouw also made himself relevant again. After beginning Friday tied for 45th, Mouw fired a 7-under round to reach 9 under and climb into a share of fifth.
His secret weapon apparently came from the kitchen.
“I told my caddie I was going to do it and put it in some boiling hot water,” Mouw said of his putter. “Funny enough, it just stayed hot all day.”
Ridiculous? Maybe. Effective? Absolutely.
Paul Peterson, last year’s runner-up, also climbed the board with a 5-under third round to reach 8 under.
Hurstbourne is playing as a par-70 with only two par-5 holes, which makes Glover’s precision even more important. He hasn’t overwhelmed the course with reckless aggression. He’s simply refused to make mistakes.
That approach built the lead. Now he’ll have to survive everyone trying to steal it.
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