Hole of the day - No. 8

It wasn't the hardest hole on the course Wednesday, but the par-3 eighth hole became a lot more difficult in less than 24 hours.

The tees were pushed back 18 yards (to 224), the pin placement moved back to an upper plateau toward the back of the green, the wind changed direction into the players' faces, and they noticed.

"I was praying for par," said Brock Neighbors of Westerville, Ohio. "I wasn't even thinking about birdie."

But he got one, which was one of just three there Wednesday after five birdies Tuesday. The stroke average climbed from 3.419 to 3.635 as 12 players made double bogey or worse, tripling the number from the previous day.

One of those serious casualties was Dustin Korte, the co-leader who came to the eighth tee just two holes away from a second consecutive under-par effort. But his double bogey pushed him to even par through 17 holes, and he finished at 73.

After using a 4-iron Tuesday, Korte tried a hybrid Wednesday, but went long and left.

"I was for real just trying to make par because it's a tough hole," Korte said. "I snapped one over by the weeds and just three-putted. I really wasn't thinking."

Co-leader Jordan McLaurin scrambled for par from a bunker; Cape Girardeau's Jordan Sheets saved par with one of his best shots of the day -- a wedge from 25 yards to tap-in length.

"I hit the same club" off the tee as Tuesday, said Sheets, who left himself short and left. "I hit my hybrid because I figured my 3-wood wouldn't put me in any better shape."

For Marshall Talkington, using the 3-wood at inopportune time contributed to one of his bogeys in a round of 79 that knocked him down the leaderboard into eighth.

"Once I hit it, the wind stopped," Talkington said.

"The difference was huge," Neighbors said. "Yesterday was probably like 205 downwind and I hit a 5-iron and was a little short. Today it was 225 into the wind, so I hit the hardest hybrid I could and drew right next to the hole, so it was pretty sweet."

Neighbors came about 36 inches from his first career hole in one there. He also had a close call on the 11th.

"I hit the flag stick," he said. "And then it almost bounced in the water after hitting the flag stick."