WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS - Saturday was moving day at the Greenbrier Classic, but it was also the day the Old White TPC struck back.
OK, in fairness, the par-70 trek didn't exactly play like the U.S. Open, and there were plenty of birdies to be found. But there was plenty of trouble to be found as well, and several players that were in contention could certainly attest to that.
You could find one of them in the final pairing in Ben Martin, who sat in a tie for second at 9 under par on Friday but limped to a 5-over 75 on Saturday. He now finds himself 10 shots back in a tie for 20th place.
But his plight was hardly an isolated occurrence.
There was Hudson Swafford, who was tied with Martin for second on Friday, but settled for a 2-over 72 to fall to 7 under.
Ask Bubba Watson how difficult the Old White TPC was after his 5-over 75 on Saturday took him from 4 under to 1 over for the tournament. Nick Watney shot a 6-under 64 on Friday to move into contention, and then moved right back out with a 2-over 72 on Saturday.
Sure, guys like Robert Streb, Chad Campbell (5-under 65s), J.B. Holmes, Xander Schauffele and Jamie Lovemark (4-under 66s) posted great rounds on Saturday, but as they rocketed up the leaderboard, others got out of their way.
By the time the dust settled, the stroke average for Saturday's third round was 70.135, the worst scoring average in any third round in all seven Greenbrier Classics. In fact, that number marks only the second time the scoring average was over 70 after the cut, joining the fourth round in 2013 (70.143).
So what was so different about the course on Saturday?
For starters, the wind picked up - and then stopped - and then picked up again throughout the day, creating a bit of a guessing game for players trying to hit into greens.
"It wasn't that it was blowing that hard, it was just no one had any clue," Schauffele said. "I don't know if anyone was mic'd up or if you heard the conversations between caddie and player, but I think everyone was kind of looking at the pin, the clouds were going one way, the pin was going the other and you're feeling something else, so I think it was tricky for everyone."
"It's gusty, it'd be blowing real hard and then it would stop," Holmes added. "It's tricky to kind of figure out. They had some pins in some good spots."
Good if you hit a perfect approach, but dangerous if a shot was the slightest bit errant.
"The rough is high and the greens are firm. You never want to shortside yourself," Lovemark said.
Yet Lovemark and others at the top of the leaderboard were able to fight through and manage approaches enough to give themselves plenty of looks at birdies.
The 65s fired by Streb and Campbell were the two best rounds of the day after 19 rounds of 5 under par or better were recorded over the first two days.
That round catapulted Streb into sole possession of second place at 12 under, but even he admitted he saw scoring opportunities shrinking as the day went on.
"More so the last couple of days than today," Streb said. "Obviously the rain finally gave up and a little bit of breeze, so it's a little tougher out of the rough. The balls are releasing, so you've got to think about it a little more."
Leader Sebastian Munoz was solid if not spectacular, carding a 2-under 68 to take a two-shot lead into Sunday.
So anything at 2 under kept pace with the lead on Saturday, and that's exactly what Davis Love III did in his bid to become the oldest-ever winner of a PGA Tour event. Love now stands at 10 under, four shots back.
Love, who has played in all seven Classics, disputed the Old White TPC's reputation for being one of the easiest courses on Tour - even after remaining squarely in the hunt.
"This course can play tough with a little breeze," Love said. "I was thinking you could have the U.S. Open here. You narrow up the fairways and firm the greens up. It's not easy. You've got to hit really good shots. I expect the same thing [Sunday]."
Love, playing in his 740th career PGA Tour event, said the course was exactly what he thought it would be.
"Little firmer, pins a little bit more in the corners, typical Saturday," Love said. "Little more wind, little firmer greens, tougher pins, scoring's not quite as easy. I said it on Thursday, that was the easiest it was going to get. It was just going to get harder and harder.
"Hitting the fairways here - the bunkers or the rough - is definitely the key. A guy who drives it straight has a huge advantage."
Contact Ryan Pritt at 304-348-7948 or ryan.pritt@wvgazettemail.com. Follow him on Twitter @rpritt.