Patrick Reed cards third-round 59 to grab lead in Hong Kong

Patrick Reed became the second player in Asian Tour history to card a 59 when he posted golf’s magic number in Saturday’s third round of the Hong Kong Open.

Reed, the LIV Golf star, hit every fairway and green on a day that began with one of the worst pre-round warmups of his career.

“I looked at my caddie, and he goes, ‘Hey, a warmup is a warmup – let’s go out and just play golf,’” Reed said afterward. “He goes, ‘Some of your best rounds have come from a poor warmup.”

And this was his lowest, as Reed birdied his last four holes and shot 11 under at the par-70 Hong Kong Golf Club.

Reed now sits at 18 under, three shots ahead of Rashid Khan and Nitithorn Thippong, as he tries to win for the first time worldwide since the 2021 Farmers Insurance Open.

This was the second sub-60 round of the year on the Asian Tour, after John Catlin – ironically, while playing alongside Reed – carded that score in Macau. The tour said Reed’s round will not stand officially as it was played under preferred lies.

Reed has stayed plenty busy since the LIV season ended in mid-September, playing twice on the DP World Tour before this three-week stretch to close out the year on the Asian Tour.