Last-minute putter change pays major dividends for Kristoffer Reitan

Kristoffer Reitan changed his putter just ten minutes before firing a third-round 65 that sent him flying up the leaderboard at the US PGA Championship.

The in-from Norwegian has had the putter for two-and-a-half years but swapped it out last week at the Truist Championship and went on to win his first PGA TOUR title at Quail Hollow.

Despite that success Reitan, who opened with rounds of 71-72 at Aronimink Golf Club, decided to switch back for Moving Day as he felt the soft face would allow him better control on the slick greens.

He proceeded to card two eagles and three birdies to move to two under and will now be aiming for a first Major Championship win less than two years after winning his first professional title and after nearly eight years in the paid ranks.

"It was a little bit of a spontaneous decision," he said of his putter change.

"It didn't feel like it was working or I wasn't getting a good feel for it so I just decided to go back to the old trusty.

"It just has a little bit of a different feel to it, a little bit softer on the face which is nice, I can be a little bit more aggressive on the quick greens.

"I might just have to keep changing putters every week!"

Scoring was much lower across the board compared to days and one and two due to some seemingly kinder pin positions and Reitan was among those to take advantage.

He turned in level par but on the usually tougher back nine he birdied the 11th and 12th before hitting the pin with his drive and making eagle on the par-four 13th where the tee had been brought up 91 yards compared to round two.

He bogeyed the next but an approach to seven feet at the par-five 16th brought another eagle as the 28-year-old soared up the leaderboard.

"I thought the front nine was gettable today," he said. "That's why I was a little bit frustrated that I wasn't able to take care of any of those chances.

"Yeah, it can be gettable on the back nine, too. You have a drivable par four, you have a par five. If you hit a good drive, you can reach it fairly easily, especially with today's wind.

"Overall I think the pins today were a little bit more forgiving or they weren't as perhaps crazy as they were a little bit the first few days where they were sitting on top of the ridges a lot. So I felt like the birdie tries that you did have didn't necessarily have like a fall-off right behind the hole. So it was a little bit easier to be a little bit more aggressive with the putts.

"Yeah, it is somewhat gettable on the back nine, too, if you hit some good shots. For me, holing some putts was crucial, because I haven't really been taking care of many opportunities the first couple of days."

Reitan spoke to the DP World Tour before his win at Quail Hollow about his stunning rise in the game over the past two years had produced plenty of "pinch-me moments".

He could be set for another on Sunday but whatever the result, he is ready to have a rest and take stock.

"Playing after a win, and especially on the PGA TOUR, is something completely new to me," he said. "So I've been trying my absolute hardest to just reset. It's a difficult thing to do.

"It's also been my ninth tournament in ten weeks, so I feel a little bit drained at this point in time. But it's still a Major, so that gives you a little bit of extra energy. Hoping I can kind of try to keep going.

"I'll have a couple of weeks off after this tournament is finished. It's difficult to reset for sure, but I'm going to try my hardest, and hopefully I can be reset at this point and try to play some good golf tomorrow as well."