Hoey charges back into Bank of Utah hunt with 65

MANILA, Philippines -- Rico Hoey shook off an early putting lapse with a scorching rebound, firing a six-under 65 Saturday (Sunday Manila time) to vault into a share of 13th and revive his bid for a strong finish in the Bank of Utah Championship at the Black Desert Resort in Utah.

After opening with a regulation par, Hoey stumbled on the second hole, three-putting from 35 feet after flubbing a seven-foot par-putt attempt. The setback, however, only seemed to ignite the big-hitting Filipino-American shotmaker.

Hoey birdied three of his next seven holes and kept the pressure on coming home, adding four more birdies on the back nine for a 34-31 card that moved him from a tie for 24th into a share of 13th with two others at 198, just five shots off the lead.

The surge was a welcome response after Hoey opened the tournament with a fiery 64, but he slipped with a mediocre 69 in the second round.

Things appeared to be headed in the wrong direction again when Hoey missed a seven-footer for birdie on No. 3. But he quickly rediscovered his touch, draining a 10-footer for birdie on the fourth before rolling in a 19-footer on the fifth.

He left birdie putts short on Nos. 6 and 7, missing from 14 and eight feet, respectively, before settling for a two-putt par from 25 feet on the eighth.

Hoey then made the most of the par-5 ninth, reaching the green in two and converting a two-putt birdie from 62 feet, tapping in for another birdie to make the turn in 34.

He missed another birdie chance from 15 feet on No. 10 but quickly made amends on the par-3 11th, knocking his tee shot close and sinking a 12-footer for another birdie. He followed with regulation pars on Nos. 12 and 13 before setting up another birdie with a precise approach to four feet on the 13th.

A 16-footer narrowly missed on No. 14, while Hoey settled for a two-putt par from 40 feet on No. 16.

He nearly aced the 131-yard 17th, leaving himself a tap-in birdie, then closed in style with another birdie on the par-5 18th after reaching the green in two and two-putting.

The 65 was built on near-solid driving and crisp iron play, with Hoey recovering impressively from his early putting troubles to produce one of the day’s better rounds.

The performance also puts the ICTSI-backed Hoey in position for a potentially significant finish as he seeks to retain his PGA Tour card through the fall schedule and accumulate the ranking points he needs.

Hoey had earlier agreed to spearhead the Philippines’ golf campaign at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, but withdrew at the last minute after finishing his regular PGA Tour season outside the standings needed to regain his card. That decision forced him into the PGA Tour’s fall schedule, where strong finishes have become particularly valuable.

At the top, Austin Smotherman remained in control after matching Hoey’s 65 to reach 23-under 190, one stroke ahead of fellow American Doug Ghim, who also shot 65 for a 191 total.

Trace Crowe and Ben Jones carded matching 64s but could only move to 195, where they were joined by Kevin Streelman, who slowed to a 68.

Smotherman and Ghim will enter Sunday’s final round in a two-man duel for the championship, while Hoey, eight shots off the pace, will look to turn his Saturday surge into another strong finish and a valuable boost to his PGA Tour card bid.