The Starter, Round 3: Deutsche Bank Championship

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Sep. 4, 2010

The third round of the Deutsche Bank Championship is set to begin Sunday. Here's a preview:

Groups we're watching:
Tee time Players  
11:20 a.m. ET,
No. 1
Tiger Woods, Ernie Els
Woods caught fire Saturday to easily make the cut. This pairing is sure to draw a huge gallery on Sunday at TPC Boston.
12:30 p.m. ET,
No. 1
Vijay Singh, Zach Johnson
Incredibly, Vijay's bid for a second FedExCup title -- as slim as his chances are -- are alive after a 68 in Round 2.
1:40 ET
No. 1
Brandt Snedeker, Jason Day
Their FedexCup spot next week seems secure for next week. But both players want a second PGA TOUR win -- bad.

EXPERT PREVIEW: PGA TOUR NETWORK on-site correspondent Brett Wright previews Sunday's action:

The weather forecast for Sunday's third round of the Deutsche Bank Championship is calling for clear skies with temperatures in the upper 70s and windy. This kind of weather will continue to dry out the greens and fairways that were firmed up quite a bit Saturday. Scoring will continue to be low because these players have figured out how to score at TPC Boston whether it is wet or dry. The greens are true, smooth and rolling at a better speed now with the dry, windy conditions. The only thing that will affect scoring in a negative way is if the wind blows in 20-30 mph gusts as it did Saturday afternoon.

Sunday's forecast

Sunny
Temp: 76 high/53 low
Sunny. Winds around 15 mph.

I am not going to say I told you so about Tiger Woods , but he has found his rhythm and is more comfortable on the golf course than he has been in a long time. He is releasing the putter on-line and reaping the benefits of it. A 6-under-par 65 is not as low as Woods can go on this layout.

Remember what used to happen to scores when Woods would start creeping up the leaderboard? He is 5 under for the championship and is not in the top 10 yet, but I believe he will be by the time he makes the turn today. I believe it will take 20 under to win this second leg of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, and I believe Woods can reach that number with two very good rounds -- let's say 63-64?

Let me give you three other players I am watching today and expecting low scores from:

Luke Donald, who was named to the European Ryder Cup Team last week by Colin Montgomerie. He no longer has anything to prove to his captain and can now just tee it up and play golf. He has a great demeanor and is making everything he stands over with the putter -- at least according to Tim Clark who played with him in the opening rounds. Donald dissects the golf course like a surgeon and plays his percentages, not making any big mistakes. He is already halfway to 20 under and with the hot putter rolling he will be there shortly.

Next let's look at Aussie Michael Sim. He is an emotional player and almost won three times this season, including two times in the last month. He is an aggressive player who is making putts this week and that is a lethal combination on this golf course. He was paired with Tiger Woods for the first two rounds and seemed to thrive on the added pressure. He has been close so much lately that this may be his week to break out.

Finally, let's look at Matt Kuchar, who won last week at The Barclays and continues his fine play here this week. Kuchar is so good with his ball striking right now that it seems unfair to the rest of the field. He drives it in the fairway, and then his seemingly-laser-guided irons give him look after look at birdie from close range. Do not be surprised if Kuchar shifts gears and leaves the field behind today. He is in a zone that players often dream about being in. He told me the greens right now are perfect and that is what winners tend to see. We will see today if his vision stays strong..

The Film Room
PGA TOUR Today: Sept. 5, 2010
Jason Day and Brandt Snedeker lead at 12 under at the Deutsche Bank Championship. Casey Black looks back to the second round and previews what to expect on Sunday. Watch it
Round 2 Highlights: Deutsche Bank Championship
Brandt Snedeker follows up his first round 66 with a 7-under par 64 and joins Jason Day in a tie for the lead at the 2010 Deutsche Bank Championship. Watch it
Shot of the Day: Andres Romero
Andres Romero records the first ace of the week at the 207-yard par-3 eighth during second round coverage of the Deutsche Bank Championship. Watch it
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