SUNRIVER — As the world record holder in the decathlon, Ashton Eaton possesses a range of athletic skills that make him track and field’s “World’s Greatest Athlete.”

Now the 25-year-old Mountain View High School graduate and 2012 Olympic gold medalist is adding another skill — golf.

Eaton was at Crosswater Club on Tuesday for the third round of the PGA Professional National Championship to promote the PGA of America’s Get Golf Ready program, a nationwide program to expose new golfers to the game in five group lessons.

Eaton, who was interviewed during the Golf Channel’s national broadcast of the PNC, completed the program earlier this month at Emerald Valley Golf Club in Creswell, near his current home in Eugene. And he took his newfound golf skills to the course for his first nine two weeks ago, just before winning his third consecutive national decathlon title at the USA Track and Field Championships this past weekend in Iowa.

“I didn’t want to keep track of my first nine,” said Eaton of his first round of golf while standing near the ninth fairway Tuesday at gray and gloomy Crosswater. “I parred two holes and I almost birdied one, but I jacked my putt.”

Well, at least he has the lingo of golf down.

Growing up in one of the Pacific Northwest’s golf meccas, Eaton had played golf only once — with friends years ago at Eagle Crest Resort’s Challenge Course in Redmond.

“And it was miserable,” he recalled.

Eaton does have some experience working in golf, though.

As a teenager he worked for Awbrey Glen Golf Club in Bend, doing odd jobs like picking the private club’s driving range and washing golf carts.

“But I never played golf there,” Eaton said. “I wasn’t interested in it at all.”

Through his track and field connections, he was turned on to the Get Golf Ready program and is now promoting it, though he is not a paid spokesman, according to the PGA.

Eaton likened the movements in a golf swing to learning to throw a discus, one of the 10 events in the decathlon.

“It’s actually been a very cool experience,” Eaton said.

So will he stick with it?

“I think so,” said Eaton. “I actually enjoy it quite a bit.”

A strong connection

Iowa golf pro Chris Black is more than just a visiting golf pro.

For the 42-year-old Black, this week represents a homecoming of sorts. The son of a pastor, he moved from Iowa to Prineville with his family when he was in second grade and stayed in Central Oregon through his freshman year at Crook County High School.

Black returned again in the early 1990s and worked for two years as an assistant pro at Prineville Golf and Country Club.

On Tuesday, Black was being followed by his wife, Jennifer, who is a Prineville native, and members of her family. Also looking on was his childhood friend, Prineville’s Dustin Conklin, who was serving as Black’s caddie.

“It was REALLY important to me to make this tournament,” said Black, who is making his sixth appearance at the PNC. “My wife made sure that I knew that I had to make it so we can come back.”

Black, who is the head pro at Hickory Grove and Edgewater Golf Course in Oelwein, Iowa, looked like he was in the midst of a fairy-tale return for much of the third round. He got to 6 under par on his front nine and was in second place.

But he struggled down the stretch and made a calamitous quadruple bogey on the par-3 17th after he pulled his tee shot into the wetlands and whiffed on his first attempt to get out.

That dropped him to even par for the tournament and into a tie for 16th place, which is still in position to make the 2013 PGA Championship.

“I really thought that this was my week this week,” Black said. “Lord willing, it may still be. I had a great start yesterday with a 31 on the front. If I copy that, who knows?”

Jerrel Grow status

Jerrel Grow, a pro at Pronghorn Club in Bend and the lone Central Oregon golfer in the PNC field, had a rough third round.

The 35-year-old shot a 5-over-par 77 to fall to a tie for 62nd place. Grow had dropped to 4 over for the day with a double-bogey 7 on the par-5 12th, but he fought his way back to 2 over with birdies on 15 and 16. But he triple-bogeyed 18 after hitting into the hazard and three-putting to close out.

Quite a finish

Georgia’s Bill Murchison made easy work of Crosswater’s usually difficult finishing holes Tuesday.

After making triple-bogey 7 on the par-4 14th, Murchison made three consecutive birdies. But his best shot came on the par-4 18th, when he holed out from the fairway for eagle.

Even with the flurry, he carded a 3-over 75 to fall to 1 over for the tournament.