Fitzpatrick holds a 1-stroke lead in Italy

Even the wind couldn’t thwart U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick at the Italian Open.

Fitzpatrick will head into the final round in the lead and aiming to go one better than three years ago after coping with challenging conditions on Saturday to post an impressive 2-under 69 and edge clear of Rory McIlroy and Aaron Rai.

Fitzpatrick, who claimed his first major title in June at Brookline, is playing the Italian Open for the seventh time. He finished second in 2019.

“It would mean the world (to win),” Fitzpatrick said. “I love coming to play the Italian Open … I love the country. I love playing golf here. The fans are fantastic and to win tomorrow, yeah, would be a great feeling.”

He takes a one-shot lead into the final round at Marco Simone club outside Rome after three birdies in the back nine got him to 10-under 203.

“We had the wind switch on nine and the golf course just completely changed,” Fitzpatrick said. “It was a wind we had not played in all week.

Cameron Smith made a pair of 7-foot birdie putts to finish off his round of 4-under 68 and allow him to jump Dustin Johnson for a two-shot lead going into the final day of the LIV Golf Invitational-Chicago.

NFL: The Falcons placed backup running back Damien Williams on injured reserve with a rib injury on Saturday.

Soccer: Paris Saint-Germain player Kheira Hamraoui published photos of her injuries from the brutal attack that left her fearing for her career. She says she is still haunted by it “night and day” and that she endured horrid abuse online afterward. Hamraoui was attacked last November following an evening out with her former PSG teammate Aminata Diallo and other teammates. Hamraoui was hit several times with a metal bar and needed stitches to her hands and legs. “It haunts me night and day,” she wrote on Twitter.