LOS ANGELES – Graham DeLaet has done just about everything in his young PGA Tour career but win. He’s already seen a sign this week that his luck could be changing.
“A lot of times, I’ve felt like I’ve played well enough on Sunday and just maybe didn’t get the bounces,” he recalled. “I was thinking about it today coming down 2. I hit a wild tee shot kind of to the right and got a great bounce off the tree and ended up with an 8-iron in just out of the rough. I was thinking to myself, the other few times I finished second and third right in the hunt, I’ve never really gotten breaks on the weekend.
“I know we still have 18 holes to go, but sometimes it’s just a good bounce or that one holed put or chipping in down the stretch.”
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DeLaet was pleased with a 1-under 70 in the third round that left him two shots behind leader Retief Goosen entering the final day.
On a course he calls the best non-major venue all year, he could be primed for that first victory – not that he’s getting ahead of himself.
“Patience more than anything, not getting ahead of myself,” he said of what he needs to do. “I’ve slept on either leads or final-group pairings before and I know laying in bed, you’re thinking about what a win can do and this and that. I’m past that now in my career.”
