Straka’s round at La Quinta in many ways was the reverse of what might have been expected. Playing the back nine first, Straka made six birdies on the way to a 30, the kind of score generally associated with the front nine at the course that opened in 1959.

Sepp Straka's game has been almost as clean as his head through three rounds at The American Express. Straka shot an 8-under 64 on Saturday in his third straight bogey-free round, staking the newly bald Austrian to a four-shot lead over Charley Hoffman,