Steady McNeill holds five-stroke edge

This round, the course prevailed at the Frys.com Open.

There was no birdie-fest at TPC Summerlin on Saturday. Not with the winds swirling and the pins tucked safely away from the middle of the greens.

Unlike the first two days of the tournament where the scoring average was below par -- 69.1 strokes on Thursday and 70.2 on Friday -- the third-round average score on the par-72 Summerlin course Saturday was 73.5 strokes.

With the majority of the field struggling, it wasn't like second-round leader George McNeill had to do anything spectacular to remain atop the leaderboard. But he wound up playing impressive golf, posting the day's lowest score as his bogey-free back nine led to a 5-under-par 67. His three-day total of 197 was good enough to keep him in front, five shots ahead of Robert Garrigus and D.J. Trahan heading into today's final round.

Four players -- John Huston, Bo Van Pelt, Garrett Willis and Kent Jones -- are tied for fourth at 12-under 203. Seven others, including Las Vegas' Bob May, are seven back at 11-under 204.

"You dream about this kind of moment from when you're 5 years old and you're putting around your house," McNeill said of being at the cusp of his first Tour victory. "I'm very comfortable with the way I'm swinging and putting so I'm not going to change anything.

"My mentality is to keep the pedal down. If I can win by 20, I will. I don't want to make it close. But if I win by one, I'm fine with that, too."

McNeill, Garrigus and Trahan will play in the final group, which goes off at the No. 1 tee at Summerlin at 10:35 a.m. Of course, the elements will dictate what adjustments the players will make today. If the wind continues to blow like it did Saturday, course management and club selection will become more critical.

"I know if I can push it up there, I'll do it," McNeill said of managing his game with a five-shot cushion. "If not, I'll take what's there and not allow my shots to kill me."

McNeill overcame two early bogeys in his first five holes Saturday, eventually settling down and properly gauging the wind and the speed of the greens. He made the turn at 1 under, then proceeded to conquer Summerlin with four birdies on the back.

"It was pretty difficult getting started because you didn't know how the wind would affect you on the greens," McNeill said. "But after four or five holes, I got a feel for it and I was fine after that.

"It's definitely rewarding to put up a number like that playing under those conditions. I'm very pleased with where things are at."

Difficult sums up Saturday's third round.

Only 20 rounds were played below par. There were more bogeys (289) than birdies (281) and the course, which had yielded 36 eagles over the first two days, had just five recorded Saturday.

For Garrigus, who like McNeill had to get through the PGA Tour's qualifying school to play this season, being tied for second is very satisfying.

"It was a tough day to play, so I was very pleased with the way I played," said Garrigus, who carded a 4-under 68 for a three-round total of 202. "We were waiting all day, too. We'd go 10 minutes between shots and I'm not the kind of guy who likes to wait around. The last three holes, we were waiting every shot. I just tried to stay calm."

Garrigus won't be going to qualifying school next year. He has earned $906,510 this season, ranking him 101st on the money list.

When he tied for ninth at the Barclays Championship in late August, he locked up his Tour card for 2008 and took the pressure off of trying to stay in the top 125.

"I was so happy because it meant I didn't have to go back to Q school," Garrigus said. "Yeah, I'm relaxed, but I also understand what the situation is. I'm going to go out and take advantage of what I need to do and that's get the job done and shoot five- or six-under or whatever it may be."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2913.