Mark Hubbard, Mackenzie Hughes set for familiar final pairing at Sanderson Farms

JACKSON, Miss. – Did Mark Hubbard anticipate contending at this week’s Sanderson Farms Championship?

“Absolutely not,” Hubbard said after a third-round 65 at the Country Club of Jackson, assuming a one-stroke lead over Mackenzie Hughes into Sunday. “No.”

Hubbard was at home outside Houston during last week’s Presidents Cup, when he was inadvertently stabbed in the toe by a kitchen knife knocked off the counter. Not ideal preparation for a three-week competitive stretch ahead.

“I had a hole in my foot this whole week, and I didn’t get to practice at all last week,” Hubbard said, “so I was just kind of coming here trying to get ready for Vegas (Shriners Children’s Open), to be honest.

“I think that probably has to do with expectations being low. That being said, I felt incredible about my game for the last six, seven months, so I’m just trying to go with it and keep those expectations low and just try and hit good golf shots.”

Once the ball is pegged, the adrenaline kicks in, and Hubbard has produced rounds of 67-69-65 in Mississippi, good for a 15-under total into Sunday. The San Jose State alum will find a familiar foe in Sunday’s final pairing, Mackenzie Hughes. The friendship has dated back to PGA TOUR Canada nearly a decade ago.

Hughes, who matched Hubbard’s birdie at 18 for a third-round 68, remembers a pairing alongside Hubbard in the final round of PGA TOUR Canada’s 2013 Wildfire Invitational. Hubbard edged Hughes by two strokes that Sunday; both ultimately progressed to the Korn Ferry Tour and then to the PGA TOUR.

Amidst the dozens of competitive rounds contested each season, final-round pairings tend to lodge in one’s brain. Even from nearly half a generation ago.

“He got the better of me back then,” Hughes said Saturday. “I’m hoping that I can get that back to even tomorrow.

“It’ll be a lot of fun, someone I’m comfortable with. He’s a great guy, easy to get along with, so it’ll be a fun day … I don’t think either of us would have ill will towards the other one if they won or I won or whatever the case may be. We’ll have a fun battle tomorrow, and whatever happens, we’ll still be friends the next day.”

Professional golf is an evolution, with players on various career paths intersecting at certain moments to create enduring memories – some of the most vivid tend to occur in final-round contention.

Both have won on PGA TOUR Canada and the Korn Ferry Tour. Hughes is a PGA TOUR winner at The RSM Classic in 2016, winning a five-way playoff that ended on Monday morning. Hubbard is still chasing his first TOUR title.

Hubbard didn’t expect to be in this position in Mississippi; he’s thankful his toe injury wasn’t worse and that he was able to tee it up. Hughes had a relaxing off-week at home in Charlotte; his mom came to town and they did some sightseeing around town, and he felt fresh into this week.

Both players have been around the TOUR long enough to know that weeks in contention aren’t to be taken for granted. They’ll relish Sunday’s opportunity in chasing the Reveille the Rooster trophy.

“It was just a matter of time, and I felt like I’ve been trending toward a week like this,” said Hughes, who said he’s been doing a better job in recent months of owning his swing and limiting a troublesome “over-draw, over-hook.”

“It’s just being patient and waiting for it to happen … I think you practice and play for these types of moments, and you want to be feeling those nerves and coming down the last few holes, being one of those guys with a chance to win.”

“To have this opportunity tomorrow, it’s awesome,” Hubbard added. “It feels sort of like a gift.”

The chasers don’t intend to make it easy. A trio of chasers at 12 under includes Scott Stallings, 2012 winner of the Sanderson Farms – played at nearby Annandale GC – and fresh off a TOUR Championship appearance last month. Garrick Higgo and Sepp Straka, both TOUR winners, also stand three strokes off the pace. Straka celebrated his wife Paige’s 30th birthday Friday night at a local steakhouse.

The Sanderson Farms Championship has proven a launching pad through the years, back to 2004 when Fred Funk won at age 48 en route to becoming the oldest PLAYERS Championship winner the following spring. Last year, Sahith Theegala held the 54-hole lead as a TOUR rookie; he finished T8 but ultimately progressed to the TOUR Championship. Sam Burns won to spark a three-win season, ascending into the top 15 in the world. Cameron Young finished runner-up as a rookie and proceeded to make the TOUR Championship.

The week after finishing runner-up to Hubbard in Canada, Hughes proceeded to earn his first TOUR-sanctioned title at the Cape Breton Celtic Classic. Perhaps regardless of who hoists the trophy Sunday, both will gain a boost for the season ahead.

Late in his Saturday presser, Hubbard thought of his good friend Ryan Brehm, who won last season’s Puerto Rico Open on the only start of a medical extension. Brehm needed a win to retain TOUR status; a runner-up finish would not cut it. It was an unlikely scenario, to say the least.

Brehm won by six strokes, earning his first TOUR title and fully exempt status through 2024.

“I would say probably the most inspiring thing maybe I've ever seen was my buddy Ryan Brehm winning in Puerto Rico last year,” Hubbard said. “We celebrated that so much we missed our flight the next day, so that was the coolest. He had one start or he’s going back to the Korn Ferry Tour, and he wins, just crushes that course. In terms of inspiration, that was huge.”

Hubbard, from the knife incident to the 54-hole lead, just might be writing his own story of inspiration, in real time.