Gary Hallberg and Jeff Freeman share the lead after 54 holes of the 2011 Champions Tour National Qualifying Tournament at TPC Scottsdale's Champions Course. The pair is tied at 15-under-par 198 with one round remaining. Jim Rutledge, the 36-hole leader, trails by two strokes and is alone in third place.
Freeman appeared poised to take a two-shot lead into Friday's final round when he teed off on his final hole 17-under-par thanks to a solid nine-hole stretch which included seven birdies starting at No. 9. However a double bogey on the final hole proved costly. Playing in the day's final group with Hallberg and Rutledge, he hit an errant 4-iron, then hit a poor chip and followed up with a three-putt to fall back into a tie for the lead.
"It was an up and down day for me, a real rollercoaster," said Freeman. "I was going along great and then I made a bad swing at No. 6 (6-iron) that buried in the bunker. I got it out but then I three-putted. I made a bogey at No. 8 and then had a nice stretch of birdies starting at Nos. 9-14. I just got fast with a 4-iron on the last hole and then hit a bad chip and three-putted. It just kind of snowballed there."
Freeman's roller-coaster round included six pars, eight birdies, an eagle, a bogey and two doubles. His eagle came on the par-4 second hole when he drained an 8-iron from 185 yards.
This is Freeman's first attempt at the Champions Tour Q-School. The 49-year-old is currently a club professional in the Orlando area. His older brother Robin is also competing in this year's qualifier (T25) and has made several appearances on the Champions Tour. Jeff has played previously on both the PGA TOUR and the Nationwide Tour. He'll become eligible in mid-April when he turns 50.
"I've just got to keep my composure and make some better swings tomorrow," he added. "I didn't put well today and I was a little shaky with the putter."
Hallberg had another solid day, shooting a 5-under-par 66. He'll play again in the final group with Freeman and Rutledge.
"It was another good day today," Hallberg said following his round. "I didn't make any putts. I just missed on a lot of putts, but the weather was beautiful and the ball seemed to be flying a little bit better than some of the other days. You could shoot a low score if you made some putts. I expect a shootout tomorrow."
Two other players moved into contention after impressive rounds. Bill Glasson and Mark Mouland improved their chances of earning a berth in the top five. Glasson posted an 8-under-par 63 to jump from T23 to T4 and Mouland's 7-under-par 64 moved him from T17 to T4. Ben Bates is also currently T4, but a double bogey at No. 18 also proved costly for him as it did for Freeman.
There was no cut in the 72-hole qualifier. At the end of Friday's final round, the top-5 finishers earn exempt status for the 2012 season until the reorder, while the next seven players will be conditionally exempt. In addition, the top 30 finishers and ties will be eligible to compete for spots in open qualifiers at all co-sponsored
