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Ridings

His only payday in that span was a T57 at the HP Byron Nelson. He’s enjoyed moderate success at TPC Southwind, making four cuts in six trips with a T24 in his first start in 2005 serving as the high point. There is little reason to be confident that he will do anything to surpass his 2005 benchmark this week.

Ridings arrived in Connecticut ranked 141st in FedExCup points due to just two top 25s among six paydays. Today’s loop of TPC River Highlands was his lowest aggregate on the PGA TOUR since his first round on the course in the 2011 edition (en route to a T43). He hit 14 greens in regulation and buried seven birdies of which five measured 10 feet or longer. The highlight was an 11-yard hole-out from off the green at the par-3 eighth hole. The 38-year-old has yet to win a TOUR event.

Veteran gamers know better than to invest in a veteran with a sketchy record following a low round on a tough course, but Ridings held in there today, so he’s worth watching on Saturday. Through 36 holes, he’s at 7-under 137, five strokes back of the overnight lead.

The 2012 Q School grad tied for 56th at the Humana Challenge, with all four rounds under par. He’s seen the weekend at Torrey Pines in three (of five) occasions with a T26 in 2009 serving as his best finish. With length among his strengths, the monster South Course should play into his skill set.

It took Ridings 14 holes to find his first birdie when he kicked in a 5'7" putt. His only other birdie came when he was able to secure a 2-putt from 63 feet on the par-5 18th. He enters the final found looking for at least a top 10, so as to gain entry into the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

The journeyman is 3-for-5 at this tournament but he’s yet to record a top 25. Perhaps today’s strong start on the more difficult of the two courses will serve as a catalyst for something special. After an opening bogey, he aced the par-3 third from 142 yards with a pitching wedge. Then, after another bogey at 7, he strung together six birdies in a nine-hole stretch. The run included respective conversions from 21'2", 24'10" and 13'6" at the 10th, 11th and 17th holes. He’d close with a bogey at the par-5 18th where he three-putted from over 54 feet.

Ridings enters the week after a bizarre second round at The Honda Classic, where he double-bogeyed both the relatively easy first and 18th holes at PGA National while circling birdies on each of the three holes that comprise The Bear Trap to miss the cut. He’s played in Puerto Rico twice in the last few years, including a missed cut in 2009 and a share of 22nd in 2011. He’s made just two (of five) cuts this year, with a T15 at the Farmers the best, meaning he could use another good finish to continue to work his way up the FedExCup standings and the reshuffle.

This was one of those rounds in which he scored as low as he possible could, and then still squeezed out one more stroke. Ridings hit only eight greens in regulation at Copperhead today but he limited the damage to two bogeys, and one of those was a three-putt at the par-3 17th hole. That means that he was 9-for-10 in scrambling all the while picking off five birdies. After par saves from 11'11" and 10'2" at the 13th and second holes, respectively, he rolled in birdies of 40'5" at 3 and 18'6" at 4. The 38-year-old journeyman then holed out from the greenside rough 11 yards from the cup at the par-4 ninth to secure his outright advantage.

The PGA TOUR’s media department reported this. Ridings was given one of the four remaining sponsor exemptions. He’s coming off a T17 at Copperhead, his second top 20 among three paydays in seven starts this season out of the graduate reshuffle. He’s missed the cut in both previous starts at Bay Hill (2006, 2008).