Eric Cole fired a third-round 63 featuring eight birdies and one bogey to move to the top of the leaderboard at 12-under at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He ranks second in Proximity to the hole (25’5”) and fourth in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green (8.130).

“It was a great day. Everything was kind of working well. I got off to a really good start,” said Cole. “I saw, I kind of knew going into it that it was going to be a harder course, firmer conditions. Getting off to that start and realizing how much harder the course was today was great. Then, yeah, just kept trying to hit good shots one after the next and make birdies when you can.

“I think it will play similar to today if there’s wind [tomorrow]. There’s no rain, so it’s not going to get any softer. So just be prepared for probably another difficult day that requires a lot of good quality shots.”

Cole has now had 19 straight par-or-better rounds on the PGA Tour (stroke-play events only), with 15 of those occurring in Texas. Saturday’s 63 marks his 13th straight under-par round in individual stroke-play events.

He is in search of his first victory in his 120th PGA Tour start. He had career-best runner-up finishes at the 2023 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches (lost in a playoff to Chris Kirk) and the 2023 Baycurrent Classic.

“It’s not going to be an easy day tomorrow,” he added, “I know that from my experience. I know that it’s going to be difficult, but that’s why I practice really hard and that’s why I try and do everything the way I do so that I could be as prepared for whatever tomorrow brings.”

Ryan Gerard fired five birdies and three bogeys for a 68 and lies in second place at 11-under. He is one of five players with two or more runner-up finishes on Tour this season (Sony Open in Hawaii, The American Express), joining Scottie Scheffler (3), Nicolai Højgaard (2), Alex Smalley (2) and Si Woo Kim (2). He leads the field in Strokes Gained: Putting (7.639) and Proximity to the hole (24’1”).

Currently projected No. 3 in the Aon Swing 5 with the top-five earning a spot in next week’s Memorial Tournament, Mac Meissner made two bogeys in his 67 and trails by two in T3 in a bid for his second top-10 finish in his third start at the Charles Schwab Challenge (T5/2024, T28/2025) and first Tour title in his 69th start.

Also tied in third place at 10-under is J.J. Spaun who made five birdies and three bogeys for a 68. He has had three wins in 257 starts, including two in Texas (2022 & 2026 Valero Texas Open). His lone top-10 finish in six prior Charles Schwab Challenge starts came last season (T6).

11-time PGA Tour winner Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, the only non-American in the top-5, made one birdie and one bogey for a 70 and trails by three in his 300th Tour start.

Alex Smalley (3 bogeys/69) and Russell Henley (double bogey at the par-4 13th/69) share fifth place at 9-under.

36-hole leader Jordan Smith of England moved down into T19 at 6-under after posting a 4-over 74 having made four bogeys.

Aon Next 10 and Swing 5

The Aon Swing 5 is made up of the five players, not otherwise exempt, who earn the most FedExCup points in the
ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic, The CJ Cup Byron Nelson and the Charles Schwab Challenge to qualify for the Memorial
Tournament; current projections (bold = in the field).

The top 10 players in the FedExCup standings, not otherwise exempt, following the Charles Schwab Challenge will qualify
for the Memorial Tournament through the Aon Next 10; current projections (bold = in the field).

Related: “It does hurt a little bit more” – Thalia Martin on the life of a professional golfer

Professional golf is tough. Away from the pomp and paydays that come from winning on tour, most golfers are forced to grind each week just to make the cut and earn a living. Golf Today caught up with England's Thalia Martin, who talks all about life as a professional golfer.