CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A PGA Championship missing star power got the best in golf Saturday when Scottie Scheffler delivered a clinic over the closing stretch at Quail Hollow for a 6-under 65 and a three-shot lead going into the final round.
Scheffler started his big run with a 3-wood to just inside 3 feet on the reachable par-4 14th for an eagle, causing so much hysteria that Bryson DeChambeau had to back off his putt across the lake at the 17th.
It ended with an 8-iron from the seam of a divot to just inside 10 feet for birdie on the 18th, creating even more space between Scheffler and Alex Noren, who had a 66 and gets his first shot in a final group with the No. 1 player in the world.
DeChambeau, the U.S. Open champion who has been a major force at golf’s biggest events, briefly took the lead with a birdie on the par-5 15th but then unraveled and salvaged a 69 that felt much better.
DeChambeau was three behind when he finished, six behind when Scheffler got done with his masterful performance by playing the final five holes in 5 under par.
The third round was delayed by morning storms, forcing a change in tee times to threesomes off both tees that didn’t start until shortly before noon. And then it became a game of musical chairs for the lead. Nine players had at least a share of the lead at one point.
One of them was two-time major champion Jon Rahm, who has not seriously contended in the four majors he has played since joining LIV Golf.
“Hard to express how hungry I may be for a major, about as hungry as anybody can be in this situation,” Rahm said. “Very happy to be in this position.”
He finished nearly two hours before Scheffler and figured he would be at least one shot behind going into the final round.
“This golf course is tricky and one shot is nothing on 18 holes,” Rahm said.
He now faces a five-shot deficit but is armed with growing confidence in his game.
Scheffler, remarkably, posted his low score for any round in a major with his 65, which moved him to 11-under 202 as he goes for a third major. It marked the first time in his career that he had the outright lowest score in a major round of anyone in the field.
The 3-wood on the 14th was what got it started. The up-and-down for birdie on the par-5 15th gave him the lead for the first time in the championship. Scheffler was equally pleased with the finish, wanting the proper conclusion to such an important round.
He holed an 18-foot birdie putt for one of only six birdies on the day at the 17th, and then finished it off with a closing birdie, each with a slight show of emotion.
It marked the first time he has gone 5 under in any five-hole stretch of a major round.
“Big emotion for me,” Scheffler said with a smile. “It was an important time in the round. I wanted to finish off the round the right way. I hit some good shots down the stretch.”
Masters champion Rory McIlroy and defending PGA champion Xander Schauffele had a long day, nothing to do with each posting a 72. They were supposed to tee off at 8:25 a.m. and likely would be finished in time for lunch.
With the change to threesomes off both tees, they didn’t start until 1:38 p.m. and were on the other side of Quail Hollow as all the action was on the closing stretch.
Davis Riley, whose game has been rounding into form since he battled a two-way miss at the start of the year, made three straight birdies around the turn and two more on the scorable 14th and 15th holes for a 67. He was at 7-under 206 along with North Carolina native J.T. Poston, who birdied his last hole for a 68.
Rahm was tied for fifth with Si Woo Kim and Jhonattan Vegas, who had two-shot leads after 18 holes and 36 holes and began Saturday with two straight bogeys. But Vegas steadied himself and was still in the mix until driving into the water on the 15th for bogey and finishing out his 73 with a three-putt on the 18th.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
Source link
