Cantlay, Laird share lead in Vegas

LAS VEGAS — Patrick Cantlay picked up enough birdies on the back nine to catch up to Martin Laird, and they each had a 6- under 65 to share the lead going into the final round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

It was another day of low scoring for just about everyone but U. S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau. He had a pair of double bogeys through six holes and went from one shot behind to at barely inside the top 40.

DeChambeau was 5 over through a five- hole stretch on the front nine. On the TPC Summerlin, that feels much more over par. “About 12,” he said.

He rallied for an even- par 71, but that left him seven shots behind with 30 players ahead of him.

That starts with a pair of past champions.

Laird, the 37- year- old Scot who learned to play the ball in the air while at Colorado State, won in Las Vegas in 2009 for the first of his three PGA Tour victories. He also lost in a playoff the following year won by Jonathan Byrd with a hole- in- one.

Cantlay’s success is more pronounced and more recent. He also won his first PGA Tour title at this event in 2017, and followed with runner- up finishes to DeChambeau and Kevin Na each of the last two years.

Cantlay and Laird were at 20- under 193, though this should be far from a twoman race.

Matthew Wolff got it started early. After making the cut with one shot to spare, Wolff had three eagles in a five- hole stretch and had to settle for pars on his final two holes for a 61.

Making three eagles at Summerlin is not unusual with a few short par 4s and all the par 5s easily reachable. Wolff, however, holed out on No. 11 from 116 yards. He drove the green on the 301- yard 15th hole to 15 feet and holed an 18- foot eagle putt on the par- 5 13th.

He never really considered 59 because he was only 2 under on the front. He played the back in 8- under 28.

“If you only shoot 2 under on the front you feel like you never have a chance to shoot 59,” he said.

Wolff posted his 18- under 195 right as the last group was starting the third round, and it held until Laird was the first to get to 19 under with a birdie on the 13th.

Wyndham Clark ( 65), Brian Harman ( 67) and Austin Cool ( 67) also were at 195.