Final round might be a friendly battle
CROMWELL, Conn. — Xander Schauffele shot a 3-underpar 67 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead over good friend and playing partner Patrick Cantlay into the final round of the Travelers Championship.
Schauffele had a 17-under 193 total at TPC River Highlands, while Cantlay shot a bogeyfree 63 that was the best of the day and was two shots ahead of PGA Tour rookie Sahith Theegala, whose 64 was highlighted by an eagle and four birdies.
Kevin Kisner (66) was fourth at 13 under, with Scotland’s Martin Laird and South Korea’s K.H. Lee within five shots of the lead after each shot a 66.
Schauffele, who won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics last summer, began the day at 14 under with a five-stroke lead. He birdied the second hole for the third time this week and had another at No. 6, part of a career-best run of 48 holes without a bogey.
However, he put his tee shot at 13 in the water and briefly fell into a tie for the lead after a bogey. He broke his minor birdie drought at 16, then hit the pin on his approach at 17 and sank another.
“I would love to have that tee ball back on 13,” he said. “For the most part I knew it wasn’t going to be easy to protect a lead, especially when it’s five shots and it’s easy to get comfortable.”
Schauffele, 28, and Cantlay, 30, have been close friends since being paired together at the 2019 Presidents Cup in Australia and they combined to win the Zurich Classic this season. That was the seventh PGA Tour win overall for Cantlay and the fifth for Schauffele.
“If only it was a combined score again this week we would be doing well,” Cantlay joked. “It’s always nice to be out with him, if he’s on my team or if he’s not.”
Schauffele and Cantlay were among those who tied for 14th last weekend in the U.S. Open.
“I’ve been looking forward to playing with Pat in a final round,” Schauffele said.
Four players were tied for seventh at 11 under, and the group another stroke back included top-ranked Masters champion Scottie Scheffler (65) and reigning tourney champion Harris English (69), one of three Baylor School graduates still in the field. Keith Mitchell (67) was tied for 15th at 9 under and Luke List (70) was tied for 42nd at 4 under.
Playing with power
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Padraig Harrington finally knows what it’s like to overpower a golf course, and it has the 50-year-old Irishman on the verge of a U.S. Senior Open title.
Harrington reached both par 5s at Saucon Valley in two shots, hitting a 5-wood to seven feet on the 608-yard 12th hole, and his 5-under 66 opened a five-stroke lead going into the final round.
After starting the day with a one-shot lead over Steve Stricker, his Ryder Cup captain foe last fall, Harrington birdied the opening two holes and was on his way. He was at 12-under 201 through 54 holes, five shots clear of former U.S. Senior Open champion Gene Sauers, who birdied the last two holes for a 68, and PGA Tour Champions rookie Rob Labritz (69).
Stricker couldn’t keep up after an opening birdie, and the winning U.S. Ryder Cup captain’s 73 left him tied for fifth at 3 under with Jay Haas (71) and New Zealand’s Steven Alker (71). South Africa’s Ernie Els (67) was fourth at 4 under.
“I could play good tomorrow and have a nice, comfortable day,” Harrington said. “I could play average tomorrow, and someone will have to come at me. Or I could play badly tomorrow, and I’ll still have a chance. I’ve basically given myself a lot of hands to win this.”
Harrington stretched his lead to nine shots but had two bogeys over the last four holes, his first dropped shots since the opening round. Otherwise it was a pure power show in contrast to how he played in his prime, when he relied on a clean strike and plenty of grit to capture the British Open in successive years (2007-08) and the 2008 PGA Championship.
Chun’s lead shrinks
BETHESDA, Md. — In Gee Chun shot a 3-over 75 to take a three-stroke lead into the final round of the Women’s PGA Championship.
On a day when Congressional Country Club gave the top contenders plenty of trouble, Chun was holding her own until she made a double bogey on the par-5 16th hole. The 27-year-old with two major championships led by five shots after the first round and six at the halfway point, but that advantage has been cut in half.
She was at 8-under 208 with 18 holes to go.
“Looking forward to an exciting final round already,” Chun said. “If it’s going to be too easy, then I feel it is boring.”
Lexi Thompson and HyeJin Choi each shot a 70 and were tied for second with Sei Young Kim (71). Chun, Choi and Kim are all from South Korea.
Thompson, a 27-year-old American, is seeking her second major title after winning the 2014 ANA Inspiration; she has second-place finishes at the Evian Championship (2015) and the U.S. Women’s Open (2019) and was third at this event in 2015.
Becoming a habit
MUNICH — Li Haotong had an eagle on the same hole for the third day running as he opened up a three-shot lead entering the final round of the BMW International Open.
The 26-year-old from China started the day at the DP World Tour event ahead by one stroke before shooting a 5-under 67 to move to 20-under 196 through 54 holes. Belgium’s Thomas Pieters (66) was second, with England’s Jordan Smith (67) third at 16 under.
Li completed the par-five sixth at Golfclub München Eichenried in three shots Thursday and Friday, but Saturday was the pick of the bunch as he hit a 21-yard chip into the hole for another eagle. He is seeking his third victory on the European-based circuit, having won the 2016 China Open and the 2018 Dubai Desert Classic.