England’s Tommy Fleetwood shot seven-under-par 63 in Saturday’s third round of the Travelers Championship to break away from a high-profile group near the top of the leaderboard.
Fleetwood, who for the second time in three rounds didn’t record a bogey, will carry a three-shot advantage into Sunday’s final round at TPC River Highlands as he seeks his first PGA Tour triumph.
Russell Henley shot 61 to move to second, and Keegan Bradley posted 63 to sit at 13 under. Australia’s Jason Day is alone in fourth at 11 under after a third-round 67, while Rory McIlroy endured another frustrating day to sit some nine shots behind Fleetwood.
The round began with Fleetwood, Justin Thomas and World No 1 Scottie Scheffler, the defending champion, tied for first place.
Scheffler’s triple-bogey on the par-4 first hole and a double-bogey on the par-3 eighth hole put him off pace. Thomas had severe troubles later.
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Fleetwood holed a long-putt birdie on the fifth as he went top of the leaderboard on day three of the Travellers Championship
Fleetwood’s highlights included a 66-foot birdie putt on the par-3 fifth hole and a 30-foot eagle putt on the par-5 13th. It was his second eagle in as many days at No 13, which he has played at five under for the tournament.
“It (winning) will come down to a bunch of things,” Fleetwood told CBS Sports. “I haven’t been in contention much at all this year, I’ve been on the outskirts if you like.
“My best finishes have been just outside of being in contention, but like really close. So to put myself there and be in the last group (on Sunday), I’m really happy with that.
“I’ve been here plenty of times, I’m looking forward to it. I’m happy with the work I’ve done and happy I’ve bounced back for the first few days of this tournament from last week (US Open).
“It’s just an amazing opportunity for me to go out and enjoy it, and hopefully it’s our time.”
Henley’s bogey-free round – after three bogeys in the second round – included five under on the front side. He had birdies on both par-5 holes and nine overall.
Bradley, the US captain for the Ryder Cup, notched birdies on four of the first seven holes and stayed in contention.
Scheffler, playing on his 29th birthday, plummeted to seven under and in a tie for eighth place with a 72, aided by a birdie on the last hole.
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Scottie Scheffler had a nightmare on day three of the Travelers Championship as he found the water twice in a row at the eighth hole
Thomas had a similar, albeit belated, decline on his way to 73, coming undone by a quadruple-bogey 9 on the 13th hole. That meltdown began with a tee shot out of bounds and included three additional shots in the rough before arriving at the green.
Harris English (67), Wyndham Clark (66) and Brian Harman (65) are tied for fifth place at eight under.
Other than Henley, the day’s best scores were turned in by Canada’s Taylor Pendrith and Australia’s Adam Scott with 62s. Pendrith moved to a tie for 14th at six under, while Scott is tied for 25th at four under.
Watch the final round of the PGA Tour’s Travelers Championship on Sunday live on Sky Sports Golf from 12.30pm stream without a contract on NOW
