Scottie Scheffler made four birdies in his final five holes to ensure he takes a five-shot lead into the final round of the Tour Championship.
Collin Morikawa is the only player within nine shots of the world number one having also finished strongly with three birdies in the last four holes at East Lake for a 67.
Scheffler’s third round 66 leaves him within touching distance of the 25 million dollars (£19 million) FedEx Cup prize having missed out after leading into the season-ending tournament last year.
He also had a six-shot lead heading into the final round two years ago but was overhauled by Rory McIlroy.
“I feel like I’ve done a lot of stuff well and played solid, so I’m looking forward to the challenge of trying to finish off the tournament tomorrow,” he said.
Scheffler could become just the second wire-to-wire champion (no ties) since the Starting Strokes format started in 2019 following Patrick Cantlay in 2021.
The strongest finish came from Sahith Theegala, who jumped into third place – four behind Morikawa – with five straight birdies to finish his round, part of a run of seven birdies and a bogey in his last eight holes en route to a 66.
Theegala recovered from a double bogey six on the third hole after he called a two-stroke penalty on himself for feeling he clipped the sand in a bunker during his backswing.
“Pretty sure I breached the rules, so I’m paying the price for it, and I feel good about it,” Theegala said.
Xander Schauffelle slipped back to fourth on 16-under-par with a 71, while Shane Lowry jumped up to eight – a further three strokes back. Lowry and defending FedExCup Champion Viktor Hovland (T13) posted the day’s low round with 6-under 65s after starting the third round at T13 and T25, respectively.
Lowry leads all first-timers in the field through 54 holes, followed by Ludvig Åberg (T10), Taylor Pendrith (15th), Matthieu Pavon (T17), Byeong Hun An (T19), Akshay Bhatia (T22), Aaron Rai (T22), Robert MacIntyre (26th) and Christiaan Bezuidenhout (T29).
McIlroy is tied for 10th, 15 strokes off the pace, after adding a 68 to his opening rounds of 69.
Related: Niklas Nørgaard leading British Masters by four shots
For the latest news in the golfing world, follow us on X (Formally Twitter).
