SAN ANTONIO — There’s just something that fits his eye, tickles his fancy, releases any jitters. Whatever it is, the closing stretch at TPC San Antonio’s Oaks Course simply works for Brandt Snedeker.
And as he heads into the final round tied for the lead at the Valero Texas Open, his opponents best beware that they don’t want to tangle with the Tennessee native on the final five holes if things are close.
Snedeker used another hot stretch on the final portion of the card Saturday, posting three birdies on the final five holes to finish his day with a 67. After playing the last five holes in 8 under through the last two days, he now sits at 10 under, tied with J.J. Spaun and former Texas Longhorns Beau Hossler and Dylan Frittelli for the lead.
The affable Snedeker, known primarily for his short game, has uncharacteristically struggled a bit with his putter this week but has made up for it by hitting the course’s wide fairways, all despite swirling winds. For example, he played the final hole — a par-5 — smart and smooth, laying up to 125 yards for his approach and then sticking his third shot into 12 feet.
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And although he missed the putt, he still feels the final portion of the course could help him, if he needs a push on Sunday. He hasn’t been in the winner’s circle since the 2018 Wyndham Championship when he posted a comfortable three-stroke victory.
“(The final five holes) set up really well for me. I’ve got a good history there it seems like over the last few times I played here,” said Snedeker, who has finished in the top 25 in each of his previous four starts at this event, including a sixth-place finish last year. “I like the way they set up and I just feel really comfortable on them. And those are all birdie holes. You’re going to have to birdie a lot of those holes to go on and win this week. So I was able to kind of take advantage of it yesterday, got hot, and today I hit a bunch of quality shots coming in.
“Wish I could have made that up on 18, but besides that, I’ll be able to pull on that tomorrow coming down the stretch. If I need to make some birdies, I know I can do it, I’ve done it. So hopefully I won’t need to, but if I do, I know it will be there.”
Beau Hossler takes a tee shot on the first hole during the third round of the Valero Texas Open golf tournament. Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports
Meanwhile, Hossler also has had success at TPC San Antonio, making the cut in the last three years.
While Snedeker has struggled with his putter, Hossler has used a hot flatstick to get to the top of the leaderboard, something that was customary for him his first few years on Tour, but has failed him in recent seasons.
And as someone who played collegiately up I-35 in Austin, Hossler knows how special this would be, to win the 100th-anniversary edition of the event. This week has seen a number of the former champions — Ben Crenshaw, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, etc. — floating around the grounds as part of the celebration.
But Hossler is still looking for his debut victory on the PGA Tour and is playing on a sponsor exemption, meaning he’s trying to put the historic perspective aside.
“I just can’t get into that. To be honest, I’ll take a win at any tournament, right?” he said. “So it would be awesome. I mean, I went to college and I live an hour and 10 minutes away from here. With that said, if I start thinking about that, I’m in big trouble. So I’m just going to go out and play some golf tomorrow and hopefully, that’s enough.”