Scottie Scheffler watches his tee shot on the first hole during the third round of the BMW Championship on Saturday in Olympia Fields, Ill. Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press
OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. — Scottie Scheffler made a few short birdie putts at the start and then kept making a lot more Saturday on his way to a 6-under 64 that gave him a share of the lead with Matt Fitzpatrick in a BMW Championship that is wide open.
Fitzpatrick had a 66, falling into a tie on the 18th when he went from the bunker to the rough, punched out under a tree to the collar of the green and had to make a 5-foot bogey putt to at least get into the final group.
They were at 11-under 199, one shot clear of British Open champion Brian Harman (67).
But that’s not the only way to keep score in the final round.
At stake for more than a half-dozen players is making sure they finish in the top 30 in the FedEx Cup that allows them to advance to the Tour Championship next week at East Lake. Among those on the bubble is Jordan Spieth.
At stake for a few Americans is trying to earn one of six automatic spots in the Ryder Cup, with the BMW Championship as the final qualifying event. Strong finishes by the likes of Max Homa and Xander Schauffele could knock out PGA champion and LIV Golf player Brooks Koepka.
And as the pleasant day south of Chicago illustrated, chaos can happen at any time.
Scheffler, with at least a share of the 54-hole lead for the first time since he won The Players Championship five months ago, kept his stress to a minimum. He dropped only one shot, responded with three straight birdies to start the back nine, hit driver off the deck to set up his last birdie and finished with two solid par saves.
Homa wasn’t so fortunate. He seized control early and while he was out of position on the seventh hole, it didn’t look like a big problem until it was. It took two chips from right of the green to get to within 15 feet, and then he three-putted – missing from 2 feet – to make a triple bogey.
He missed two more par putts from 5 feet and 8 feet on the back nine, but steadied himself coming in and holed a 7-foot par putt on the final hole for a 71.
That was nine shots worse than his course-record 62 on Friday, but it left him within two shots of the lead. Rory McIlroy (67) and Viktor Hovland (65) were three behind.
McIlroy opened with four birdies in six holes when his round came to a halt, particularly on the 10th green when he three-putted from 15 feet.
“The greens are pretty good. They’re just getting a little choppy with how soft they are,” said McIlroy, who was not surprised to hear Homa missing from 2 feet.
Homa, meanwhile, now shares the North course record with Sam Burns, who had eight birdies and a clean card for a 62. That was valuable because it put Burns in the group at 7-under 203 and it revived his chances of going to East Lake.
He had opened with rounds of 71-70, not the ideal start for someone who came into Olympia Fields at No. 30 in the FedEx Cup. The four-way tie for seventh projects him inside the top 20, and now it’s a matter of staying there.
EUROPEAN/LPGA: Seeking their first top-tier professional titles, English golfers Daniel Brown and Gabriella Cowley will take leads into the final round of the ISPS Handa World Invitational, which is co-sanctioned by the European tour and LPGA Tour in Ballymena, Northern Ireland.
Brown started the third round with a six-shot lead and maintained that advantage after making birdie on two of his last three holes for a 3-under 67. His nearest challengers are Alex Fitzpatrick (67) and Wilco Nienaber (63), with Adrian Otageui (66) a stroke further back.
Cowley shot 5-under 67 and was on 6 under overall, one stroke clear of Ryann O’Toole of the United States (68) and Esther Henseleit of Germany (69).
American player Marissa Steen, who led after round three, dropped into a tie for 11th and six shots off the lead after shooting 75.
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