PGA TOUR Record back-nine leads to tie at top

John Rollins shot a 10-under to tie four others for the Deutsche Bank lead.
NORTON, Mass. (AP) -- John Rollins was going nowhere Sunday when he jokingly told his caddie to brace himself for a record back nine at the Deutsche Bank Championship. He had no idea it would leave him atop the leaderboard, part of the largest logjam on the PGA Tour in 22 years.
As the leaders were still warming up on the range, Rollins holed a bunker shot for an eagle on the 18th hole to set a back-nine record with a 28 and matching his career-best round of 63.
Even more surprising is that it held up on a sunny, breezy afternoon on the TPC of Boston.
Rollins was at 10-under 203, and no one could pass him.
Hometown favorite Billy Andrade started and finished with birdies and made 16 pars in between for a 69.
Jason Bohn, energized by a peanut butter and jelly sandwich he ate on the 14th hole, birdied his final four holes for a 67.
Carl Petterson plodded along to a 68. Olin Browne recovered from a tough start for a 70.
The five-way tie for the lead going into the final round involved the most players on the PGA Tour since a five-way tie in 1983 at the Colonial.
In the hunt
But they aren't the only ones in the hunt, not by a mile.
Kent Jones, who also shot 63 before the leaders teed off, and Joey Sindelar (69) were one shot behind. Fourteen other players were within four shots of the lead.
The only one missing was Tiger Woods.
His round fell apart when he hit a 3-wood into the bushes and made a double bogey on No. 5, bogeyed the next hole and never quite recovered. He shot 72 and was separated by seven shots and 35 players from the lead.
"I joked with my caddie at the turn, told him he was going to see the best 29 on the back nine," Rollins said. "I ended up shooting 28. I played great on the back, hit the ball great, made some putts, and here we go."
Cheering squad
The loudest cheers late in the afternoon were for Andrade, who grew up in Rhode Island and, like Brad Faxon, considers this his hometown tournament.
Andrade nearly holed a bunker shot on the 18th hole, then rolled in a 4-foot birdie to join the fray.
"That's what it's all about, getting yourself ready to have a chance," Andrade said. "I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I'm going to have a blast. I haven't been in that position in a long time."
Andrade was inspired by watching Faxon win last week in Hartford before a New England crowd for his first victory in four years. Maybe he's next.
Or maybe Faxon can complete the New England sweep.
He won the Buick Championship after making the cut on the number. Faxon narrowly made the cut Saturday, then shot 66 in the third round and suddenly is only four shots out of the lead.
The crowd lost some of its energy as Woods continued to tumble out of contention, although now it has a potluck of players who can seize control at any minute.