Miguel Angel Jimenez shoots 66 at Firestone for share of lead in PGA Tour Champions major
Seeking his four victory of the year, Jimenez played a five-hole stretch in the middle of the round at Firestone South in 4 under, making birdies on Nos. 7-8 and 10-11. The 61-year-old Spanish star dropped a stroke on the par-3 12th, then parred the final six holes.
Alker, tied for the second-round lead, had a 67 to match Jimenez at 8-under 202.
Jimenez won the Trophy Hassan II in February in Morocco, the Hoag Classic in March in Newport Beach, California, and the Principal Charity Classic in a playoff three weeks ago in Des Moines, Iowa. He has 16 career victories on the 50-and-over tour.
Alker birdied the par-4 17th to pull even with Jimenez, then made a 5-footer for par on the par-4 18th after missing the green long and left. The 53-year-old from New Zealand won the Cologuard Classic in March in Tucson, Arizona for his ninth Champions title.
Michael Wright (66) and Freddie Jacobson (67) were tied for third at 6 under. Richard Green (67) was 5 under.
The winner will get a spot in The Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass next year.
Firestone South previously hosted the World Series of Golf and then a World Golf Championship. It's a strong test for players who next go to the U.S. Senior Open in Colorado.
Angel Cabrera, who already has won two majors this year at the Regions Tradition and the Senior PGA Championship at Congressional, was 2 over after a 73.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox Sports
3 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Ferrari's Leclerc stuns the McLarens to take pole for F1's Hungarian Grand Prix
Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Charles Leclerc snatched a surprise first pole position of the year for Ferrari at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, beating both McLarens. Leclerc punched the air in delight as he climbed out of the car after beating Oscar Piastri by 0.026 of a second and the other McLaren of Lando Norris by .041. Leclerc had consistently been the best of the rest behind the McLarens in practice but remained well off Piastri and Norris' pace. That changed in qualifying, with the help of conditions which gradually got gloomier and windier, working against the McLarens. Norris and Piastri were each about half a second slower per lap in the final part of qualifying, compared to the second segment. Still, pole came as a shock at a circuit which Leclerc had called 'by far the worst track of the season for me' on Thursday. 'What?' Leclerc exclaimed over the radio when he was told he'd qualified first. 'Honestly, I have no words. It's probably one of the best pole positions I've ever had because it's the most unexpected,' Leclerc added later. Pole position is usually a big advantage in Hungary, where overtaking is difficult, but Norris noted the chance that rain could spring some surprises for Sunday's race. 'I have no idea how it will go, but one thing for sure is that I will do absolutely everything in order to keep that first place,' said Leclerc, who's on pole for the 27th time in F1 but doesn't have the best record converting those starts into wins. He'll be seeking his ninth F1 victory Sunday. It was a stark contrast with yet another frustrating day for Lewis Hamilton in the other Ferrari. Hamilton has won the Hungarian Grand Prix a record eight times but qualified 12th as the seven-time champion's troubles in his first season with Ferrari continued. 'Every time, every time,' Hamilton told the team over the radio after he qualified outside the top 10 for the second straight race. That came after Ferrari's executive chairman John Elkann called it 'a rough season' in comments Saturday on the F1 website, and defended Ferrari's trust in team principal Fred Vasseur, whose contract extension was announced Thursday. Ferrari hasn't won a Grand Prix since Carlos Sainz, Jr.'s victory in Mexico in October, when the Spanish driver — now at Williams — also had the Italian team's last pole. Defending champion Max Verstappen was only eighth after struggling with the balance of his Red Bull, and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda was 16th. That piles more pressure on the Japanese driver, who hasn't scored a point in six races. ___ AP auto racing: recommended Item 1 of 3
San Francisco Chronicle
3 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Ferrari's Leclerc stuns the McLarens to take pole for F1's Hungarian Grand Prix
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Charles Leclerc snatched a surprise first pole position of the year for Ferrari at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, beating both McLarens. Leclerc punched the air in delight as he climbed out of the car after beating Oscar Piastri by 0.026 of a second and the other McLaren of Lando Norris by .041. Leclerc had consistently been the best of the rest behind the McLarens in practice but remained well off Piastri and Norris' pace. That changed in qualifying, with the help of conditions which gradually got gloomier and windier, working against the McLarens. Norris and Piastri were each about half a second slower per lap in the final part of qualifying, compared to the second segment. Still, pole came as a shock at a circuit which Leclerc had called 'by far the worst track of the season for me' on Thursday. 'What?' Leclerc exclaimed over the radio when he was told he'd qualified first. 'Honestly, I have no words. It's probably one of the best pole positions I've ever had because it's the most unexpected,' Leclerc added later. Pole position is usually a big advantage in Hungary, where overtaking is difficult, but Norris noted the chance that rain could spring some surprises for Sunday's race. 'I have no idea how it will go, but one thing for sure is that I will do absolutely everything in order to keep that first place,' said Leclerc, who's on pole for the 27th time in F1 but doesn't have the best record converting those starts into wins. He'll be seeking his ninth F1 victory Sunday. It was a stark contrast with yet another frustrating day for Lewis Hamilton in the other Ferrari. Hamilton has won the Hungarian Grand Prix a record eight times but qualified 12th as the seven-time champion's troubles in his first season with Ferrari continued. 'Every time, every time,' Hamilton told the team over the radio after he qualified outside the top 10 for the second straight race. That came after Ferrari's executive chairman John Elkann called it 'a rough season' in comments Saturday on the F1 website, and defended Ferrari's trust in team principal Fred Vasseur, whose contract extension was announced Thursday. Ferrari hasn't won a Grand Prix since Carlos Sainz, Jr.'s victory in Mexico in October, when the Spanish driver — now at Williams — also had the Italian team's last pole. Defending champion Max Verstappen was only eighth after struggling with the balance of his Red Bull, and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda was 16th. That piles more pressure on the Japanese driver, who hasn't scored a point in six races.
Hamilton Spectator
3 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Ferrari's Leclerc stuns the McLarens to take pole for F1's Hungarian Grand Prix
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Charles Leclerc snatched a surprise first pole position of the year for Ferrari at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, beating both McLarens. Leclerc punched the air in delight as he climbed out of the car after beating Oscar Piastri by 0.026 of a second and the other McLaren of Lando Norris by .041. Leclerc had consistently been the best of the rest behind the McLarens in practice but remained well off Piastri and Norris' pace. That changed in qualifying, with the help of conditions which gradually got gloomier and windier, working against the McLarens. Norris and Piastri were each about half a second slower per lap in the final part of qualifying, compared to the second segment. Still, pole came as a shock at a circuit which Leclerc had called 'by far the worst track of the season for me' on Thursday. 'What?' Leclerc exclaimed over the radio when he was told he'd qualified first. 'Honestly, I have no words. It's probably one of the best pole positions I've ever had because it's the most unexpected,' Leclerc added later. Pole position is usually a big advantage in Hungary, where overtaking is difficult, but Norris noted the chance that rain could spring some surprises for Sunday's race. 'I have no idea how it will go, but one thing for sure is that I will do absolutely everything in order to keep that first place,' said Leclerc, who's on pole for the 27th time in F1 but doesn't have the best record converting those starts into wins. He'll be seeking his ninth F1 victory Sunday. It was a stark contrast with yet another frustrating day for Lewis Hamilton in the other Ferrari. Hamilton has won the Hungarian Grand Prix a record eight times but qualified 12th as the seven-time champion's troubles in his first season with Ferrari continued. 'Every time, every time,' Hamilton told the team over the radio after he qualified outside the top 10 for the second straight race. That came after Ferrari's executive chairman John Elkann called it 'a rough season' in comments Saturday on the F1 website, and defended Ferrari's trust in team principal Fred Vasseur, whose contract extension was announced Thursday. Ferrari hasn't won a Grand Prix since Carlos Sainz, Jr.'s victory in Mexico in October, when the Spanish driver — now at Williams — also had the Italian team's last pole. Defending champion Max Verstappen was only eighth after struggling with the balance of his Red Bull, and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda was 16th. That piles more pressure on the Japanese driver, who hasn't scored a point in six races. ___ AP auto racing:
