A 63 Pushes Levi Into One-Shot Lead : Golf: Tom Kite, the tournament’s second-round leader, falls into third place after shooting a 74.

HILTON HEAD, S.C. —  Wayne Levi didn’t regard his round of golf as exceptional Saturday, saying nonchalantly, “I was just playing along.”

It was, however, exceptional by any standard.

Levi shot an eight-under-par 63 in the third round of the Nabisco Championships at Harbour Town Golf Links, tying records in the process.

On a chilly, overcast day, Tom Kite, who had a four-stroke lead after 36 holes, came back to the field, but remained in contention.

However, Levi, a 36-year-old pro, who earnestly plays the stock market, is the front-runner now. His 54-hole score of 206 has provided him with a one-shot lead over Donnie Hammond.

Tom Kite, who soared to a 74 after shooting a six-under-par 65 Friday, is at 208, while Fred Couples, Greg Norman and Mark O’Meara are at 209.

Levi had eight birdies without a bogey on his round. He had a 30 on the front nine, equaling the course record. And his 63 also tied the Harbour Town record held by Jack Nicklaus, Denis Watson and Jim Hallet.

Levi, who was 29th on the money-winning list coming into the tournament and barely qualified for the 30-man field, said he has been playing well this year, but has squandered strokes.

He didn’t squander any Saturday and got a big lift when he chipped into the cup from 40 feet off the green for a birdie on the par-four, 439-yard eighth hole. That was his fifth birdie and he got three more.

With a first-place paycheck of $450,000 awaiting the winner of the tournament, one would assume that there is considerable pressure on Levi going into today’s final round.

He doesn’t look at it that way.

“There’s not a lot of pressure,” Levi said. “I’m going to make a big check no matter what.”

There is seemingly plenty for everyone with a Nabisco purse of $2.5 million. The second-place finisher gets $270,000, with third-, fourth- and fifth-place finishes worth $172,000, $120,000 and $100,000, respectively.

“I haven’t won a tournament since 1985, but I had a lot of good chances to win tournaments this year, but just let them get away,” Levi said. “I’ve been happy with my play generally.

“There really isn’t the pressure here that there is other tournaments like the Masters, or the U.S. Open. I don’t know if it’s because there’s a lot more hype, or a lot more people around in those tournaments.

Levi conceded, though, that blowing a shot today could cost him $50,000, or making one would make up $50,000.

“That’s what’s fun,” he said.

Levi also has the incentive of making up for his stock market losses on paper.

“I need the money. I need to cover my margin calls from the last mini crash,” he said.

But Levi said he won’t beat his brains out for another $5,000 if he happens to slip below the first 15 finishers.

“But if you’re near the top, that’s a different story,” he said.

Kite set the tone for his round when his drive off the first tee went out of bounds.

“That was a little shocker. It wasn’t a good shot, but it didn’t deserve to go out of bounds,” Kite said. “It was right down the tree line and caught one of the low branches.”

Kite wound up with a double bogey on the par-four, 397-yard opening hole, not the most demanding on the course.

He got back to even par for the round with birdies on the second and ninth holes. But then he had three consecutive bogeys from the 12th through the 14th holes.

“I didn’t play very well today. That should be fairly obvious by my score,” Kite said. “It was just one of those days, similar to what Curtis (Strange) had yesterday with his 75.

“I hit a few poor shots today that cost me. And the good shots I hit didn’t turn out very well. But I’m still in a very good position.”

So is Hammond, the first day leader with a 65. He lost the lead with a 73 Friday, but shot a two-under-par 69 Saturday.

“I played real well again today, just like I played the first day,” Hammond said. “I drove the ball really well and that made a lot of holes really easy.

“But those last couple of holes got me again.”

He was referring to the par-three, 169-yard 17th and the par-four, 458-yard 18th. Both holes are near Calibogue Sound, where the wind was whipping up later in the day. Wind, however, wasn’t as much of a factor overall as it was Friday.

Hammond bogeyed the last three holes Friday. He bogeyed the final two holes Saturday, but got a birdie at No. 16.

Instead of being intimidated by those holes, Hammond said he expects to do better on themtoday.

“I’m hoping that 16, 17 and 18 owe me something,” he said.

Couples, who shot a four-under-par 67, was paired with Levi.

“It was fun watching him play,” Couples said. “He had a fantastic round. He made it look easy. I had a pretty good round myself, but if I hadn’t played with Wayne, it would have looked a lot better.”

Norman, who had a 74 Friday, is back in the hunt now with his 68.

“Today was the day you just wanted to get yourself back in contention,” he said. “It’sa major championship with a lot of money and a lot of pride on the line.”

Levi, the stock market plunger, is mainly interested in the money.

Golf Notes

Scott Hoch and Payne Stewart came in at 210. Stewart, the tour’s leading money winner, shot a 71. Ted Schulz, Paul Azinger, Dave Rummells and Curtis Strange are tied at 211. Like Tom Kite, Strange had a double bogey on the first hole. “It isn’t the way you want to start your day,” he said.