Golf
Associated Press 8y

Ryan Moore leads by one after a long day at the John Deere Classic

Golf

SILVIS, Ill. -- Ryan Moore shot two more rounds of 6-under 65 on Saturday to take the third-round lead in the John Deere Classic, and he finished at 8:25 p.m. in nearly dark conditions.

After opening Thursday with a 65, Moore never got on the course Friday in the tournament that finally got back on schedule Saturday, when the players raced to finish before dark. Play was delayed three-and-a-half hours Thursday when an inch of rain fell, then the start was delayed five hours Friday after an overnight storm dumped another 2.4 inches on the soaked course.

Morgan Hoffman and Ben Martin each shot 62 to pull within a stroke at 17 under.

The 33-year-old Moore has four PGA Tour victories, after he won the CIMB Classic in 2013 and 2014. He was third in March in the Valspar Championship and has five top-10 finishes this season.

In the third round, Moore birdied the par-4 14th, hitting a 60-yard approach to a foot, and made a 6-foot birdie putt on par-3 16th. He parred the final two holes, including the par-4 18th with a large scoreboard providing just enough light to see.

Hoffman had six straight birdies on Nos. 11-16 and parred the last two. He's winless on the PGA Tour.

Martin birdied four of the last five holes, chipping in for birdie on the par-4 18th. He won the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in October 2014.

Johnson Wagner was fourth at 14 under after a 67.

Wesley Bryan, the leader Friday when play was suspended, was tied for fifth at 13 under after a 70. He earned a PGA Tour card last week with his third Web.com Tour victory of the year.

South Korea's Whee Kim was also 13 under after a 64.

NCAA champion Aaron Wise was 11 under after a 63. Making his PGA Tour debut as a pro, the former Oregon player won a PGA Tour Canada event two weeks ago in Edmonton, Alberta.

Steve Stricker shot 68-68 to reach 7 under. The 49-year-old Stricker, a former University of Illinois player from Wisconsin, won the event in 2009, 2010 and 2011.

Zach Johnson shot 71-71 to remain at 6 under. The 2012 tournament winner and two-time major champion is from nearby Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Jordan Spieth chose to not defend his title because he didn't think it would be appropriate in light of his decision to skip the Rio Olympics.

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