J.J. Spaun fired five birdies and three bogeys on Saturday to close with a 2-under 70 and take a one-shot lead at 12-under at The Players Championship.
“I’ve been playing really well this year, so I can’t say I’m particularly too surprised, but I’m definitely glad to be in a position to have a chance to win the golf tournament tomorrow. All I can do is keep pushing forward and see where we all add up tomorrow.”
The American holds his fifth career 54-hole lead/co-lead on Tour and the second this season (2025 Sony Open in Hawaii/finished T3). He is 1-for-4 in converting to victory having won at the 2022 Valero Texas Open.
He seeks a second PGA Tour win in his 228th career start. He has recorded 11 top-10s in 80 starts since his win in Texas, his best result being T2 at this year’s Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches. He also finished T3 at the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Spaun feels a different mindset has helped his performance in recent months.
“I think it was kind of in the middle of the season last year when I played really terrible to start the year. I had some health stuff, like, fighting off viruses and flus that put me physically unwell. But I didn’t want to blame that on my poor play.
“Halfway through the season it was looking like I was going to be done, like not going to finish 125 [in the FedEx Cup], and I kind of was thinking about, Hey, I played eight years out here, I’ve got a great family, I’ve accomplished, I’ve won. So it’s not the end of the world if this is how it ends for me.
“With that, that’s kind of when my attitude changed. Not that I had a poor attitude, but my perspective, I guess.
“Then I went on this tear kind of the last half of the year last year to finish inside the Top 125 and keep my status, and I’ve kind of been using the same outlook to start the year this year. It’s been working out pretty well.”
Bud Cauley fired an eagle at the par-5 9th as well as seven birdies and three bogeys for a 66 and moved up into solo second place at 11-under. 66 marks his low score in his thirteenth career round at The Players Championship with his best finish so far being T47 in his first appearance in 2019.
“It was tough today. Seemed like every hole was a challenge with the wind and just trying to somehow get it on the fairway and get it on the green and roll in a putt, but it was tough,” said Cauley.
The American started the week as first alternate and was added to the field on Monday after Lee Hodges withdrew with a rib injury. He also entered the week with only six starts left on a Major Medical Extension and needs 66.893 FedExCup points in those six starts to be eligible to play the remainder of the season out of the Major Medical category. To accomplish that he needs to finish T18 or better.
“I was out for a long time, and it’s funny, when I first came back and started playing again, I really felt ready. Then I kind of reflected — my first tournament was Phoenix last year, and I kind of reflected on that this year playing Phoenix again. I wasn’t quite as ready as I thought I was, just having a year under my belt again and playing.
“I’ve tried to just really practice with a purpose and just make little changes and just get a little bit better. I feel like some things are starting to come together that I’ve been working on for a while now.”
American Lucas Glover started his round with a bogey and back-to-back birdies and went on to make two more birdies before the 14th, then proceeded to double bogey the par-4 15th, eagle the par-5 16th and double bogey the par-3 17th to close with a 71 and moved up into T3 at 9-under.
Compatriot Alex Smalley made three birdies and three bogeys for a 72 and a share of third place.
Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy who seeks to become the eighth multiple winner of the event made three birdies and four bogeys for a 73 and lies in T5 at 8-under. He has won twice on Tour when trailing by four or more strokes after 54 holes (2010 Truist Championship/4 strokes, 2016 Dell Technologies Championship/6 strokes).
American Akshay Bhatia who held a share of the overnight lead made four birdies against five bogeys and a double bogey at the par-4 5th to move down into a share of fourth place.
36-hole co-leader Min Woo Lee of Australia fired a single birdie at the 18th but made five bogeys and a double bogey at the par-4 5th for a 78. He is currently tied in sixteenth place at 5-under.
