[PHOTO: David Berding]
What a difference six days makes.
Last weekend, 20-year-old Aldrich Potgieter used his impressive power game to push through a three-man playoff and win his first PGA Tour title at the Rocket Classic. But on Sunday (Australian time), the tour announced that the South African had withdrawn from this week’s John Deere Classic.
The tour did not release a reason for the WD, which came roughly two hours after the conclusion of the third round, in which Potgieter posted a five-over 76. That was tied for the second-worst round of the day. He fell from three shots off the lead at the start of the round into a tie for 58th.
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Potgieter had seemingly been playing well in the hangover week after claiming his first tour title. In his first two rounds at TPC Deere Run, he shot 67-66, easily making the cut.
Potgieter is still currently listed in the field for this week’s Genesis Scottish Open. He is not yet qualified for the Open Championship a week later at Royal Portrush. However, his spot in the Official World Golf Ranking (49th entering John Deere after the Rocket win) is expected to land him among the first alternates into the field. And projections for The Open make it appear that five or six players will be taken off the alternate list to round out the 156-player field, meaning Potgieter appears likely to get into the championship.
