While Justin Thomas suffered, Keith Mitchell displayed a record round on the snake pit of the Valspar Championship. Mitchell underlined that the ‘Snake Pit’ is called brutal for a reason after his Saturday round at the Copperhead course. It’s the third toughest three-hole stretch, according to the PGA Tour stats, with holes called Mocassin, Rattler and Copperhead.
From 2000, the snake pit saw 4.978 over par, while the other 15 holes saw plus-2.6. Mitchell’s performance was outstanding, concerning the fact that only two golfers, Mark Brooks and Vijay Singh, scored 5-under on the course throughout the week. Thus, Mitchell’s gameplay was quite impressive, as he birdied 16 and 17. Then he took another shot to drop into the 18th hole, which gave him an eagle. With that, he recorded a 4-under over the toughest three holes, which is unmatched. Reflecting on the same, Mitchell talked about his experience after Saturday!
Keith Mitchell Feels Privileged To Have Managed A Terrific Score On Saturday
Mitchell caught something of the corner of his eye after shooting an eagle for the final hole on the third round and he could already hear the shouting of the crowd. It was the moment he understood that he clinched something astounding. Then, in an interview, he said that he was lucky to have done so.
“Obviously, some luck involved in that, but the good thing is I executed all the shots I wanted to…That’s really all I could do. I could have hit those same shots and made three pars and been just as happy. So, honestly, if I hit the shots like I hit coming down the stretch tomorrow I’ll have a chance. Because I hit ’em all where I wanted to.”
An eagle hole-out to take the solo lead!
@K_m_Mitchell is the first player in tournament history to play the Snake Pit (Nos. 16-18) in 4-under par @ValsparChamp. pic.twitter.com/EWrfSoY918— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 23, 2024
He further continued to talk about how he executed the putts well and had control of his driver.
“The first really good putt I made all day of really substantial length…when I feel like I have the technique to do it if I can hit my driver like I do. So, it was all distance control. I learned that, fortunately. I hate that it took this long, but it’s better late than never.”
His round finished at 66 with a two-shot lead over Hughes. The last couple of holes were satisfying to watch after he worked on his form. Last season, 160th in strokes gained but this season’s The American Express saw him working on his gameplay and tied for 9th place. He landed at T9 at the Cognizant Classic as well. Now, it is to see if Mitchell can finish in the top-10 after Sunday’s round at the Valspar Championship.
