A Two-Man Broadway Show

MAMARONECK, N.Y. — So after three days of heat and humidity and wind and rain and double bogeys and eagles and rough tall enough to hide a courtesy car, the PGA Championship will be decided today at Winged Foot when somebody answers a few questions.

First, what do you call it when a 25-year-old Texan who already has won the British Open just happens to be hotter than high noon on a Dallas sidewalk?

Is it Justin time?

Then, is it finally time for a 33-year-old guy from Georgia who has played 39 major events to win his first?

Whatever the answers, it’s pretty clear that the PGA Championship is back to a match-play format, basically because Justin Leonard and Davis Love III begin the last round tied for the lead and nobody else is even in Westchester County.

Tom Kite and Lee Janzen are the closest and they’re seven shots behind. In fact, Leonard and Love are the only players under par through 54 holes of the 79th PGA, which had just about everything Saturday except a host of golfers in contention.

At least the two leaders were up to the task. Leonard’s five-under 65 was a course record for the intimidating old layout, which got a lot more difficult in 95-degree heat and scorching sunshine.

Then it just got a lot wetter in the late afternoon when a sudden rainstorm halted the round for nearly two hours.

Love, who began the day one shot behind Janzen, produced a four-under 66 and caught up with Leonard just before 8 p.m. when he guided a 10-foot birdie putt into the hole at No. 18.

Love saved his round from going south on the last three holes. On the 16th, he hooked his drive into the trees, and when he tried to lay up, his ball hit some branches and stayed in the deep rough. Love hit a wedge and the ball stopped 12 feet behind the hole. He made the downhill putt for par.

On the 17th, Love pulled his seven-iron second shot and the ball buried in a bunker. But he blasted out to 10 feet and made the putt to save par.

All in all, Love was moved to say nice things about Winged Foot.

“It’s very, very, very hard,” he said.

Love also has found that winning a major features the same degree of difficulty. He has had some good chances, such as the 1995 Masters and the 1996 U.S. Open, but it hasn’t happened yet.

“I’ve got myself where I want to be and that’s with a chance,” Love said. “I just want to go out and put up a good score. It’s a great opportunity and I hope there’s a lot more like it.”

The opportunity in front of Leonard is a fairly heady one. Not only can he win his second major, it would be two in a row for him, something that hasn’t been done since Nick Price won the British Open and PGA in 1994.

Leonard was asked how he felt about having a chance to win two majors in one year.

“Yeah, it would be nice to go ahead and knock that out,” Leonard joked.

Love said Leonard has been a much more effective player since switching to a metal driver. And then there is the confidence factor.

“He’s running on high,” Love said. “He’s got a lot of confidence and I’m going to have that trying-to-win-the-first-one pressure.”

Low pressure dominated for a while. A fast-moving thunderstorm chased the players off the course and caused a 1-hour 55-minute delay. The sun was shining again when play resumed at 7:15 p.m. with Leonard waiting to hit his second shot at the 18th and tied with Love at six under.

Love, who was on the green at No. 15 when play stopped, walked back out and gently guided in a four-foot putt for par to stay even.

Leonard’s five-iron rolled just past the hole and left him a 10-foot putt for birdie. The way the ball headed straight for the hole and dropped in, Leonard could have hit it with his eyes closed.

Maybe Leonard is just the way Tom Kite said he is--hardly the model for modesty.

Leonard didn’t deny that the popular portrayal of his personality might be faulty.

“I’m going to keep the facade going,” Leonard said. “I’m not going to tell you how I feel inside right now. I’ve got some confidence going, but it’s inner confidence and I just prefer to keep things like that inside.”

Maybe something unusual will happen and someone will burst out of the pack to catch up, but they all have a long way to go. Phil Mickelson was right there through 15 holes, but he triple-bogeyed the 16th and bogeyed the 18th to finish with a 73.

Mickelson is at one-over 211, tied with Tiger Woods, David Duval, Scott Hoch, Fred Couples and Jeff Maggert. Hoch, who had a 68, is the only one of the group who shot under par.

The PGA switched from match play to stroke play in 1958. Love said it’s probably not a good idea to spend too much time thinking about the match-play similarities today.

“If we get caught up in what we’re doing, somebody can shoot a great round like Justin did today and get back in it,” he said. “This golf course is very, very hard.

“I don’t particularly want to get into a situation where I’m trying to beat Justin Leonard. I want to win the golf tournament.”

That’s a start, of course. At least it isn’t too crowded with golfers who have a chance.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

THE LEADERS

Justin Leonard: 68-70-65--203 -7

Davis Love III: 66-71-66--203 -7

Tom Kite: 68-71-71--210 E

Lee Janzen: 69-67-74--210 E

Phil Mickelson: 69-69-73--211 +1

Jeff Maggert: 69-69-73--211 +1

Fred Couples: 71-67-73--211 +1

Scott Hoch: 71-72-68--211 +1

David Duval: 70-70-71--211 +1

Tiger Woods: 70-70-71--211 +1

Complete Scores: C12

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Tiger Woods hit the shot of the tournament on No. 16, but finished with a double bogey and a bogey. C12