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ATLANTA — After Xander Schauffele hit his approach to eight feet on the 18th hole Thursday at the Tour Championship, Matt Kuchar, the other player in his pairing, sidled up and said, “You’re putting for a 59.”
The scoreboard showed Schauffele at 10 under on the par-70 East Lake course. But Kuchar was kidding, and he elicited a chuckle from Schauffele, who had started the tournament at four under as the Tour Championship’s highly anticipated staggered-scoring format made its debut.
Schauffele, 25, missed his birdie attempt. But his bogey-free six-under 64 was the low round of the day, vaulting him into a three-way tie for the lead in the tournament, which is the FedEx Cup playoff finale.