Akshay Bhatia started the day four shots behind leader Thorbjørn Olesen and fired nine birdies, four of them consecutively from the 3rd, and one bogey to close with an 8-under 63 and take a share of the lead at 18-under at the 3M Open.

Bhatia, whose 63 matches his career-low score, seeks a third PGA Tour victory in his 90th start (2023 Barracuda Championship, 2024 Valero Texas Open) at the age of 23.

“All in all, just a pretty solid round. Felt like I did a pretty good job of playing out of the rough today,” said the American. “I didn’t hit it particularly great off the tee, but thankfully greens are soft enough to where you can kind of do that.”

Dane Olesen made his first ace on Tour at the par-3 8th as well as four birdies and two bogeys for a 67 and retains a share of the lead. 195 marks his lowest 54-hole total on Tour where he seeks a first victory in his 95th start at the age of 35 as well as to become the first player from Denmark to win on Tour.

“Slightly in between clubs,” he said of his ace. “Actually we were between 7 and 6. Obviously it was a back pin. It just felt like I couldn’t get there with a 7 so we went for a soft 6-iron. Obviously took the slope perfectly, a big bonus to see it go in. But yeah, it’s been a long time since I’ve had one so it was nice, it was nice.”

The eight-time DP World Tour winner, earned PGA Tour membership for the 2025 season after finishing No. 7 in the 2024 DP World Tour Top 10, which awards membership to the top ten finishers in the final Race to Dubai Rankings, not otherwise exempt.

“I’m not going to lie, there’s going to be a lot of pressure [tomorrow], but I felt like in my career I’ve dealt with pretty well with pressure. Obviously the wins on the DP World Tour, but Ryder Cups also. Yeah, it’s going to be exciting. I’m happy to be in this position going into tomorrow. It’s going to take a lot, there’s a lot of guys up there. I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of birdies. It will be difficult for sure.”

Three of the six champions of the 3M Open held at least a share of the 54-hole lead (most recently Jhonattan Vegas in 2024).

American Kurt Kitayama bogeyed the 17th but still recorded a career-low 11-under 60 for a share of third place at 17-under alongside compatriot Sam Stevens who posted a bogey-free 66 and leads the field in Strokes Gained: Around the Green (3.197) through three rounds and Japan’s Takumi Kanaya who made one bogey and closed with a 65.

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