WORLD NUMBER ONE Scottie Scheffler conjured a late birdie blitz to fire a four-under-par 68 and grab a one-shot lead after the third round at the PGA Tour’s Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio on Saturday.
Scheffler, bidding to successfully defend his crown at Muirfield Village, rattled in four birdies in the final five holes to move to eight under, one ahead of overnight leader Ben Griffin, who stumbled with an even-par 72.
Three-time major champion Scheffler, who started the day three off the pace, was forced to bide his time after opening his round with 13 pars.
But the 28-year-old American got things going on the par-four 14th, draining a 10-foot birdie putt before making a birdie four on the par-five 15th, when his third shot from the edge of the green left him with a tap-in.
A par on 16 left him at two under for the day but Scheffler was soon on the move at the par-four 17th, when he stuck his approach to eight feet and then rolled in the birdie putt.
Another birdie on the 18th, with Scheffler draining a 14-foot birdie putt, thrust him into a share of the lead alongside Griffin.
At that stage, Griffin looked to have overcome the worst of a roller coaster round to hang on to the lead.
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The in-form American, chasing his third PGA Tour win of the year, had got off to a smooth start after a trio of early birdies on the sixth, seventh and eighth holes.
But four straight bogeys derailed his progress and allowed the chasing pack to close.
Griffin steadied the ship with back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15 leaving him on 10 under, five clear of the field.
Yet Scheffler’s late charge narrowed the deficit and ensured Griffin headed to the 18th with a share of the lead.
He looked to have done enough to finish the day alongside Scheffler when his third shot from the greenside rough left him with a five-footer to par.
But Griffin’s short putt rolled wide for bogey, leaving him with the daunting task of having to chase Scheffler in Sunday’s final round.
Scheffler, meanwhile, said he had not panicked after seeing Griffin go five shots clear at 10 under earlier in the round.
“No lead’s safe around this place,” Scheffler said. “I knew if I kept going and played a decent round, I would be in somewhat of a position to chase him down tomorrow.”
Canada’s Nick Taylor is third on the leaderboard on five under, three behind Scheffler, following a two-over-par 74. Austrian Sepp Straka is tied for fourth on three under alongside Keegan Bradley and Jordan Spieth.
Shane Lowry is T7 after shooting one-over par on Saturday. Jason Mowry / Icon Sportswire/Alamy
Jason Mowry / Icon Sportswire/Alamy / Icon Sportswire/Alamy
Shane Lowry, who started Saturday four shots back, salvaged something from a disappointing moving day with two late birdies to hang on six shots behind Scheffler.
Lowry couldn’t get a putt to drop in the early part of his round, and needed all of his short game ingenuity to save par at the par-five fifth with a good up-and-down from the greenside rough.
He couldn’t repeat the trick at the par-three eighth, missing a four-footer for par to drop his first shot of the day, and then needed a 16-footer to save his par at the 596-yard 11th.
Back-to-back bogeys on 13 and 14 saw him drop back to level par for the tournament, but he rallied down the stretch with a birdie at the par-five 15th before a sensational approach at the last left him with a kick-in birdie to finish with a one-over par 73 to sit on two-under in a tie for seventh.
He’ll tee off at 6.21pm alongside Jacob Bridgeman, with the final group of Scheffler and Griffin out at 7.05pm.
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Scheffler grabs Memorial lead with birdie blitz, Lowry six shots back
WORLD NUMBER ONE Scottie Scheffler conjured a late birdie blitz to fire a four-under-par 68 and grab a one-shot lead after the third round at the PGA Tour’s Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio on Saturday.
Scheffler, bidding to successfully defend his crown at Muirfield Village, rattled in four birdies in the final five holes to move to eight under, one ahead of overnight leader Ben Griffin, who stumbled with an even-par 72.
Three-time major champion Scheffler, who started the day three off the pace, was forced to bide his time after opening his round with 13 pars.
But the 28-year-old American got things going on the par-four 14th, draining a 10-foot birdie putt before making a birdie four on the par-five 15th, when his third shot from the edge of the green left him with a tap-in.
A par on 16 left him at two under for the day but Scheffler was soon on the move at the par-four 17th, when he stuck his approach to eight feet and then rolled in the birdie putt.
Another birdie on the 18th, with Scheffler draining a 14-foot birdie putt, thrust him into a share of the lead alongside Griffin.
At that stage, Griffin looked to have overcome the worst of a roller coaster round to hang on to the lead.
The in-form American, chasing his third PGA Tour win of the year, had got off to a smooth start after a trio of early birdies on the sixth, seventh and eighth holes.
But four straight bogeys derailed his progress and allowed the chasing pack to close.
Griffin steadied the ship with back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15 leaving him on 10 under, five clear of the field.
Yet Scheffler’s late charge narrowed the deficit and ensured Griffin headed to the 18th with a share of the lead.
He looked to have done enough to finish the day alongside Scheffler when his third shot from the greenside rough left him with a five-footer to par.
But Griffin’s short putt rolled wide for bogey, leaving him with the daunting task of having to chase Scheffler in Sunday’s final round.
Scheffler, meanwhile, said he had not panicked after seeing Griffin go five shots clear at 10 under earlier in the round.
“No lead’s safe around this place,” Scheffler said. “I knew if I kept going and played a decent round, I would be in somewhat of a position to chase him down tomorrow.”
Canada’s Nick Taylor is third on the leaderboard on five under, three behind Scheffler, following a two-over-par 74. Austrian Sepp Straka is tied for fourth on three under alongside Keegan Bradley and Jordan Spieth.
Shane Lowry, who started Saturday four shots back, salvaged something from a disappointing moving day with two late birdies to hang on six shots behind Scheffler.
Lowry couldn’t get a putt to drop in the early part of his round, and needed all of his short game ingenuity to save par at the par-five fifth with a good up-and-down from the greenside rough.
He couldn’t repeat the trick at the par-three eighth, missing a four-footer for par to drop his first shot of the day, and then needed a 16-footer to save his par at the 596-yard 11th.
Back-to-back bogeys on 13 and 14 saw him drop back to level par for the tournament, but he rallied down the stretch with a birdie at the par-five 15th before a sensational approach at the last left him with a kick-in birdie to finish with a one-over par 73 to sit on two-under in a tie for seventh.
He’ll tee off at 6.21pm alongside Jacob Bridgeman, with the final group of Scheffler and Griffin out at 7.05pm.
– © AFP 2025
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