Michael Brennan moved into an ideal spot Saturday in the Wyndham Championship. He’s the co-leader with Beau Hossler, who was just happy to finally finish the third round.
Brennan posted five birdies across the final eight holes to shoot 7-under-par 63 on Saturday and move into a share of the lead with Hossler through three rounds in Greensboro, North Carolina.
“That’s the spot you want to be, you want to be in the last group coming down the stretch on Sunday,” Brennan said. “I’m glad I put myself into that position.”
The duo is level at 16-under 194 for a one-shot edge entering Sunday’s final round.
Hossler, who was the second-round leader, completed his round of 66 following two late-round weather-related pauses at Sedgefield Country Club.
“It was incredibly chaotic,” Hossler said. “I got off to a really poor start as far as my ball-striking. Really settled in nicely, and then I think clearly the delays ruined the momentum a bit. … just glad to make it through.”
Brennan’s lone bogey came on the second hole before he got rolling.
Hossler’s best finish this year was a tie for third place at the Myrtle Beach Classic in May. Still seeking his first career win on tour, he has twice been runner-up when losing in playoffs and finished second four total times.
Brennan’s only PGA Tour victory came in last year’s Bank of Utah Championship.
South Korea’s Tom Kim also shot 63 and sits at 15 under in third place.
Alex Smalley (65) and Sweden’s Alex Noren (65) are at 14 under, while Davis Thompson (65) is in sixth place at 13 under.
Colombia’s Nico Echavarria’s 62 marked the best score of the round, allowing him to move to 11 under and climb into a tie for eighth place. A day earlier, he was one stroke away from missing the cut. On Saturday, his eagle on the par-5 fifth hole got him rolling in a bogey-free round.
“There was enough wind where it was shifting, but I’m very happy the putter got hot and hit some quality shots,” Echavarria said. “So everything was clicking.”
This is the final tournament in the PGA Tour’s regular season. Golfers need to be in the top 70 of the season’s standings to advance to next week’s FedEx Cup playoffs.
“It’s really hard to stay in the present,” Brennan said. “It’s easy to kind of think about the consequences of where you finish the tournament.”
Because he’ll have a later final-round tee time than he anticipated, the surge up the leaderboard caused Echavarria to change his flight plans for Sunday night in advance of next week’s FedEx Cup playoff opener in Memphis.
Hossler began the round with a one-stroke lead. Nineteen golfers were within four strokes of him. Several golfers rose past Hossler on the leaderboard before he began his round.
Hossler notched five birdies during a 10-hole stretch before the momentum was halted because of a lightning delay. He was bogey-free through 15 holes before storms caused the day’s first suspension of play. He bogeyed the 16th hole upon the resumption of play.
There was another suspension prior to Hossler playing No. 18, with his tee shot going into the rough off the right side of the fairway. But he recovered for par with a 4-foot putt to maintain a share of the lead.
“Certainly probably wasn’t exactly the ideal situation,” Hossler said. “But with that being said, you’ve kind of got to deal with the cards you’re dealt and hopefully make the best of it.”
Jordan Smith had a highlight even though he shot even-par 70 and remained at 11 under. He notched a hole-in-one on the 16th hole.
“A hole-in-one always helps if you have one of them in a round,” Smith said. “It was like a perfect 9-iron for us, and obviously it came out perfectly.”
Brooks Koepka, who needs a strong finishing spot this weekend to move into the top 70, slumped with a 74 on Saturday and slid to 3 over in the tournament.
Defending champion Cameron Young, who made the cut on the number, shot 72 and is at 1 under for the tournament.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michael Brennan surges into co-lead entering final round of Wyndham
Reporting by Detroit News wire services / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Detroit News wire services | USA TODAY Network
