Reigning NCAA medalist John Peterson made the cut on the number and played in the last group Friday in the Children's Hospital Classic.
So he played in the first group teeing off Saturday morning and sped around Black Creek Club with a 10-under-par 62 for the best round of the day.
"The course was set up for the taking. I was thinking 64-64 on the weekend would be pretty good," Peterson said. "I finally putted better."
The former LSU star shot 5 under on the front with five birdies. And he did the same on the back. His three-round total of 14 under has him tied for seventh place and six shots off the lead.
Peterson is one shot ahead of former LSU roommate Andrew Loupe, who encouraged Peterson to Monday-qualify and make his professional debut in the Children's Hospital Classic.
"We packed our stuff and Mondayed in," Loupe said. "It's worked out well."
Loupe shot an 8-under 64, including an eagle on No. 6, for the second-best round of the day. He has been playing on the Hooters Tour this summer and is making his Nationwide Tour debut this week.
"I thought that the Hooters Tour was a great learning experience, and it's nice to come out here with the guys and do well," Loupe said. "I put a lot of extra time in working on and around the greens, and that's helped a lot."
Hodge, Weatherly slip
Former UTC standout Jonathan Hodge and Scott Weatherly of Fort Payne made the cut but didn't make up much ground Saturday.
Weatherly shot 80 and is 3 over for the tournament. He will be in the first group off at 7:40. Hodge shot even par with three birdies and three bogeys. He will begin the final round at 8:36.
"It was pretty similar to the last few days, but I made three bogeys," Hodge said. "I could not make a putt. I hit putts that feel really good and they just don't go in."
Friendly groupings
Memphis residents Doug Barron and Casey Wittenberg were paired together, as were Scottsdale, Ariz., residents Trevor Murphy and Roger Tambellini, which made for two of the most comfortable Saturday pairings.
"We can't stand each other," Tambellini joked. "You would have played worse if you played with somebody else?"
Wittenberg grew up following the likes of Barron, Loren Roberts and Vance Veazy around the St. Jude Classic.
"We've been friends since he was 12 years old, and the problem now is that he's better than me," Barron said. "We don't play as much as we used to, and we used to have some good games in Memphis."
Late final pairings
12:30 p.m.--B.J. Staten (203) and Kyle Reifers (203). 12:40--Aaron Goldberg (202) and Andrew Loupe (203). 12:50--John Peterson (202) and Matt Every (202). 1--Peter Lonard (201) and Justin Bolli (201). 1:10--Brice Garnett (199) and Miguel Carballo (200). 1:20--John Mallinger (196) and Billy Hurley III (198).