A grouped leaderboard full of rookies, ex-loan officers, relative unknowns, journeymen and big champions seemed to be turning into a two-man race before Scottie Scheffler took control at the 2023 Players Championship. The Texan emerged from the crowd towards the end of round three and was the only player in the field to complete three straight rounds in the 60s and will go into Sunday with a solo lead of 14-under.
Scheffler will start the final round two shots ahead of world No. 50 Min Woo Lee. The Aussie looked poised to share the 54-hole lead with Scheffler before dropping his only shot of the day to 18. Behind Lee, the rankings start to thin as the world No. 2 finds fourth ahead of another Australian, Cameron Davis, third.
On a day of record-breaking low scores, second ace of the week on the par-3 17, and dropping the course record, Scheffler stood out from the crowd. His 65 cut Lee’s 66 by a shot when it looked like Lee could do no wrong. Scheffler remained patient when he encountered difficulties, seizing his opportunities and playing the winning style of golf on Pete Dye’s masterpiece.
Others will have to do the same on Sunday if they want to keep Scheffler from running away. Several outsiders want to sneak in through the side door, including England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Aaron Rai at 9 under. The two signed for 65s in Round 3 and positioned themselves well should Scheffler falter. Sungjae Im is down at 8 under a shot and is joined by Tom Hoge, who at 62 set the course record on Lap 3 at TPC Sawgrass.
Ranking of the Players Championship 2023
1. Scottie Scheffler (-14): There just can’t be enough nice things to say about Scheffler. He started his third round in an ideal manner, kicking a birdie on #1 and chipping for eagle on #2. He then turned 31 (with a beach ball). His back nine was a lot more mundane with seven pars and two birdies, but that’s what he’ll need on Sunday as the course tightens and the opposition fire on him. A win would see him retake the world No. 1 ranking from Jon Rahm while becoming the only man to hold the Players Championship and Masters simultaneously alongside Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.
2.Min Woo Lee (-12): Lee’s only missed putt from 10 feet came on the 18th and it will surely spoil his dinner. Despite the disappointment on the final hole, Lee should be proud of his 66. After taking the lead, the young Australian seemed very comfortable in his position and continued to put pressure on Scheffler behind him. He defeated Matt Fitzpatrick in a playoff in his most recent win at the Scottish Open in 2021 and won’t be afraid to do the same to Scheffler.
3. Cam Davis (-10): The other young Australian appeared at the 2022 Presidents Cup alongside fellow countryman Adam Scott. The big leap forward in his career felt inevitable in 2023, but Davis admitted he faced some health issues earlier in the year. He floated around for most of the third round and started his day with nine straight pars down the front. A back-nine 31, including birdies in places 17-18, put him just behind the two in front.
“I was unwell for the first few months of the year,” Davis said Thursday. “I couldn’t really practice much. I let a few things come to me. … This is the first week that I’ve really felt like I’m getting the hang of it again. Yes, hopefully this is just the beginning for me.”
T4. Aaron Rai, Tommy Fleetwood, Chad Ramey, Christiaan Bezuidenhout (-9): Rai moved to Ponte Vedra Beach just two weeks ago and now has a chance to win the biggest title of his career just around the corner from his home. He had one of the best three-hole finishes in the Players Championship playing the No. 16-18 4-1-3. The Englishman went from 5 under to 9 under in under an hour and catapulted his name into the competition.
T8. Sungjae Im, Tom Hoge, David Lingmerth (-8): Hoge started his week with a 78, fought back with a 68 and broke the course record at TPC Sawgrass on Saturday with a 62. He surpassed a number of players who have shot 63 before, including big champions like Freddie Couples, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and Greg Norman. Hoge gained nearly eight shots on the field through a rounded performance consisting of +1.06 shots off the tee, +3.89 shots on the approach, +0.19 shots around the green, and +2.44 shots on putting.
T11. Justin Rose, Taylor Montgomery, Denny McCarthy (-7): McCarthy sticks his head in TPC Sawgrass every few years. A serious attack was underway on his front nine as he birdied five in his first seven holes to reach 9 under. He played his next 11 holes in 2 over lowlights through a double bogey on the par-5 11th (the easiest hole on the course).
T14. Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Patrick Cantlay, VIktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, Jason Day and six others (-6): After nearly missing the cut, Spieth made the most of his moving day with a bogey free 66. Without that middle section of his second round, the three-time major champion would be in a much better position, but he still thinks he has a chance . He placed third in shots won from tee to green on Saturday and outside the top 50 in shots scored on putts on Saturday. So if the putter comes alive, maybe it will prove right.
“I want the toughest conditions when you’re behind because you have very little to lose and a lot to win,” said Spieth. “So I’m going to keep that attitude tomorrow no matter where I’m at because I imagine I’ll be back at least six or seven.”
T26. Max Homa, Hideki Matsuyama, Tyrrell Hatton, Tony Finau and five others (-5): Matsuyama is struggling with some injuries at the start of 2023 and perhaps his Bogey Free 67 in Round 3 will prove to be a turning point in his year. He drove the ball quite well for the first three days but has yet to figure out the approach play. That’s been Matsuyama’s bread and butter throughout his career, so you’d think it would bounce back at some point and hopefully before the Masters, where he always seems to thrive.
T35. Cameron Young, Russell Henley, Taylor Pendrith and five others (-4): Young flipped in 30 and felt like he had left punches out there. He failed to convert any of his three Eagle opportunities – including one from 6 feet at No. 12 – and lost shots to the field on the greens. It seemed like he was off and running, and even more so when he got to 7 under with a birdie on the par 2 par 5 (his 11th hole). He stumbled on homecoming with three bogeys in his last seven holes and carded the high score in his three-ball between himself, Spieth and Homa.