-
5 hours ago
The Players Championship – third-round leaderboard
-12 JJ Spaun (US); -11 B Cauley (US); -9 L Glover (US), A Smalley (US); -8 R McIlroy (NI), C Conners (Can), A Bhatia (US); -7 S Straka (Aut), P Cantlay (US), J Knapp (US), M McGreevy (US)
Selected others: -5 S Scheffler (US), R MacIntyre (Sco); -4 T Fleetwood (Eng)
Rory McIlroy slipped four shots off the lead after a punishing back nine in blustery conditions during round three at The Players Championship.
The 2019 champion carded a one-over 73 to trail unheralded American JJ Spaun who leads at 12 under, one ahead of tour veteran Bud Cauley.
McIlroy was at 10 under after nine holes at Sawgrass’ iconic Stadium Course but struggled on the second nine, dropping shots at the 12th, 13th and 17th holes as well as missing a presentable birdie chance on the par-five 16th.
He did, however, birdie the last to remain in touch amid loud roars from the fans surrounding the 18th green.
“I felt like I played better than I scored,” said McIlroy. “I left a lot out there but at the same time I am not too far away.”
As for Spaun, he showed admirable composure throughout his round, including an outstanding par putt from 25 feet on the final hole when he seemed to be faltering, after bogeying the 17th.
At one stage, there were seven players within one shot of the lead, but the gusting winds made scoring tough.
Cauley was among the few to make a significant upwards move, carding the joint best score of that day with a six-under 66 to reach 11 under.
He is two ahead of 2009 US Open champion Lucas Glover, who chipped in three times during a rollercoaster round of 71. His final chip-in was for an eagle on the par-five 16th, but that was sandwiched by double bogeys on the 15th and 17th, the latter after finding water off the tee on the notoriously tricky ‘island hole’.
Overnight joint leader Akshay Bhatia is alongside McIlroy on eight under, his gutsy two-over 74 ensuring he remains in contention going into Sunday. Canada’s Corey Conners is also on that number, after shooting a 66 much earlier in the day.
Meanwhile, world number one Scottie Scheffler was uncharacteristically irritable during his level-par round of 72 that left him at five under. He threw his ball into the water after a three-putt bogey on the 17th, and then angrily chucked his club at his golf bag after another mistake on the last.
With play already brought forward on Sunday to avoid forecast storms, Scheffler will need a remarkable round to secure an unprecedented third straight title at TPC Sawgrass.
The leaders will head out around 14:00 GMT and BBC Sport will have live radio and text commentary of the final round.
Spaun profits as Sawgrass wind rattles leading golfers
Getty ImagesAfter benign weather over the first two days, the strengthening winds around TPC Sawgrass wreaked havoc with the later starters.
However, amid the chaos, Spaun’s control and resilience, particularly alongside McIlroy, was evident. Birdies on the second and third holes gave him an early lead, which he shared at times but never relinquished.
In a round characterised by measured iron play, he almost grabbed a 40-foot eagle at the ninth and navigated a testy back nine with just two blemishes, at the 15th and 17th holes before rolling in his lengthy par putt on the last to stay in the lead.
The Californian’s sole win on the PGA Tour came three years ago at the Valero Texas Open and he did hold a one-shot lead going into Sunday earlier this season at the Sony Open, but finished in a tie for third.
As for McIlroy, since 2013 he is 56 under par for the back nine at TPC Sawgrass – 20 shots better than any other player – but he struggled throughout, hitting only five fairways from the tee, while his short game deserted him, leaving chips short and failing to drop par putts.
He was not alone.
First to fall was overnight leader Min Woo Lee, whose errant drive at the fifth ended in a double bogey and he never recovered, shooting a six-over 78.
Two-time major winner Collin Morikawa was another to shoot high, a costly round of 76 leaving him eight shots back and likely out of contention.
Fellow American Will Zalatoris looked superb on the front nine and held a share of the lead for some time only to completely unravel on the way home and plummet from 11 under par to two under.
Scotland’s Bob MacIntyre is at five under after a 72, while England’s Tommy Fleetwood, who had looked solid through the first 13 holes dropped four shots over his final five to close at four under par.
Further down the leaderboard, 2014 champion Rickie Fowler, who started the day six off the lead, signed for an 82 to finish at five over.
