Tommy Fleetwood, Patrick Cantlay share lead with $10 million going
ATLANTA– One swing cost Tommy Fleetwood the lead Saturday in the Tour Champion. Another terrific closing stretch offered Patrick Cantlay a shot at the ideal ending to 3 years without winning.Cantlay birdied 4 of the last five holes on a rain-soaked course at East Lake for a 6-under 64 and a share of the lead with Fleetwood, who rebounded from his double bogey on the par-3 15th hole with a set of birdies for a 67. And still the most engaging name of all is Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who has till Wednesday to decide if he needs to choose himself for the U.S. team and made a compelling case with a 63 that left him very much in the mix.Bradley is consumed with the Ryder Cup, and it didn’t help that when he registered for the Tour Championship, he saw the Ryder Cup bag of Arnold Palmer from the 1963 matches at East Lake. He was the last playing captain in the Ryder Cup.” It was actually strange taking a look at it,” Bradley said. “Like actually unusual. Due to the fact that I’m no place worldwide of
Arnold Palmer and somehow I remain in this with him today. “Throw in Russell Henley and Scottie Scheffler, and Sunday is forming up as a thriller to conclude the PGA Trip season with more than
one cup in the conversation.In a FedExCup ending in which no started with an edge in points or shots, it comes down to those 5 players separated by four shots, with Cameron Young(71)6 behind.Fleetwood ran
off four straight birdies on the front nine, and he appeared to be in control after a wedge into 6 feet for birdie on the 13th. Then came the 15th, 220 yards to a peninsula green.
From a shorter tee, just one tee shot went into the water each of the very first 2 rounds.Fleetwood was the 10th player to strike into the water Saturday, a 6-iron he understood was wet when it left his club. However, the congenial Englishman didn’t let that ruin his round, responded to with a pitching wedge from the bunker to 12 feet for birdie on the 16th. He stopped working to birdie the par-5 18th, leaving him in a tie with Cantlay at 16-under 194. Fleetwood has at least a share of the 54-hole lead for the 3rd time in his last 6 tournaments.Cantlay won the FedExCup in 2021. He hasn’t won since the BMW Championship in 2022, though he never looks too away his game. One change was dealing with putting guru Phil Kenyon two weeks earlier on his setup, and maybe that’s the spark. “It’s great to close the method I did, especially the last 2 days,”Cantlay stated.”I’m happy with where I’m at.” Tee times and television times for the final round of the FedExCup playoff ending, the Trip Champion at East Lake Golf Club. Cantlay may have ensured his area at Bethpage Black. Even at 15th in the Ryder Cup standings, he was seen as sensible choice provided how he performed under pressure in Rome and at the Presidents Cup last year in Montreal.Now he has a chance to win the FedExCup for the second time. “It’s constantly good to have your game shape up at the end of the year, but like I said, I’m concentrated 100
%on this week, and we’ll worry about the Ryder Cup a little later,”he said.For Fleetwood, it’s another chance at his very first PGA Tour title after gut-punching losses at the Travelers Championship and the FedEx St. Jude Championship 2 weeks ago. All he wanted was another chance, and this is another excellent one.
“That’s what everybody wants,”Fleetwood stated.” I am lucky enough that I get to be one of those guys, so I’m having the time of my life out there and I’m playing excellent
and I’ve got to enjoy it while it’s occurring. You never understand.”Tomorrow might be my time, it might not, but I’ll still have a fun time doing it.”Henley went quiet on the back 9 up until a birdie on the last hole for a 69, leaving him 2 shots
behind. Reengineering today
‘s leaderboard with starting strokes is the best and most efficient way to prove that the Trip’s decision to revert back to the traditional format was worthwhile. Scheffler was so annoyed with
putts he felt he slightly misread that he tossed his putter at his bad after missing an 8-foot birdie try out the 16th. He had actually missed out on 2 other birdie opportunities from slightly closer. He still shot 66, his 20th successive round under par.
“Seemed like another aggravating day,” Scheffler said. “I felt like I did some things well out there. I was simply a little bit off on my reads the majority of the day. I struck some great putts that just didn’t fall. In general, I didn’t shoot myself out of the tournament, which making bogeys around this location can really easily do that.
“Happy with the turn-around,” he said. “But man, I wish I could have gotten a bit more out of the round.”
Sunday is for the FedExCup and the $10 million prize, an opportunity for Scheffler to end up being the very first repeat FedEx Cup champion, for Fleetwood to lastly get that very first PGA Tour title, for Bradley to make it practically difficult not to choose himself.He already has two wins in the last 13 months, as lots of as any American this side of Scheffler.
“I’m either going to win or I’m not and we’re going to understand the picks,” Bradley said. “We’re pretty positive with the choices that we have. Another day of golf to sort of complete this entire thing, and I can’t wait. I’m finished with this entire process. I want it over with either way.”