Scottie Scheffler storms into a 3-shot lead in the PGA Championship with another major in sight

Doug Ferguson · The Associated Press

· Posted: May 17, 2025 8:32 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

A PGA Championship missing prima powerfulness got the champion successful play Saturday erstwhile Scottie Scheffler delivered a session implicit the closing agelong astatine Quail Hollow for a 6-under 65 and a three-shot pb going into the last circular successful Charlotte, N.C.

Scheffler started his large tally with a 3-wood to conscionable wrong 3 feet connected the reachable par-4 14th for an eagle, causing truthful overmuch hysteria that Bryson DeChambeau had to backmost disconnected his putt crossed the water astatine the 17th.

It ended with an 8-iron from the seam of a divot to conscionable wrong 10 feet for birdie connected the 18th, creating adjacent much abstraction betwixt Scheffler and Alex Noren, who had a 66 and gets his archetypal changeable successful a last radical on the No. 1 subordinate successful the world.

DeChambeau, the U.S. Open champion who has been a large unit astatine golf's biggest events, concisely took the pb with a birdie connected the par-5 15th. And past it each came undone.

He missed a four-foot par putt connected the 16th. He recovered the h2o connected the par-3 17th — the cheer for Scheffler made him backmost disconnected a 25-foot bogey putt that helium yet missed — and helium had to scramble for par to salvage 69 that felt overmuch better.

DeChambeau was 3 down erstwhile helium finished, six down erstwhile Scheffler got done with his masterful show by playing the last 5 holes successful 5-under par.

The 3rd circular was delayed by greeting storms, forcing a alteration successful tee times to threesomes disconnected some tees that didn't commencement until soon earlier noon. And past it became a crippled of philharmonic chairs for the lead. Nine players had astatine slightest a stock of the pb astatine 1 point.

One of them was two-time large champion Jon Rahm, who has not earnestly contended successful the 4 majors helium has played since joining LIV Golf.

"Hard to explicit however bare I whitethorn beryllium for a major, astir arsenic bare arsenic anybody tin beryllium successful this situation," Rahm said. "Very blessed to beryllium successful this position."

He finished astir 2 hours earlier Scheffler and figured helium would beryllium astatine slightest 1 changeable down going into the last round. "This play people is tricky and 1 changeable is thing connected 18 holes," Rahm said. He present faces a five-shot deficit, but equipped with increasing assurance successful his game.

Scheffler, remarkably, posted the debased people of immoderate circular successful a large with his 65, which moved him to 11-under 202 arsenic helium goes for a 3rd major.

The 3-wood connected the 14th was what got it started. The up-and-down for birdie connected the par-5 15th gave him the pb for the archetypal clip successful the championship. Scheffler was arsenic pleased with the finish, wanting the due decision to specified an important round.

He holed an 18-foot birdie putt for 1 of lone six birdies connected the time astatine the 17th, and past finished it disconnected with a closing birdie, each with a flimsy amusement of emotion.

"Big emotion for me," Scheffler said with a smile. "It was an important clip successful the round. I wanted to decorativeness disconnected the circular the close way. I deed immoderate bully shots down the stretch."

Masters champion Rory McIlroy and defending PGA champion Xander Schauffele had a agelong day, thing to bash with each posting a 72. They were expected to tee disconnected astatine 8:25 a.m. and apt would beryllium finished successful clip for lunch.

With the alteration to threesomes of some tees, they didn't commencement until 1:38 p.m. and were connected the different broadside of Quail Hollow arsenic each the enactment was connected the closing stretch.

Davis Riley, whose crippled has been rounding into signifier since helium battled a two-way miss astatine the commencement of the year, made 3 consecutive birdies astir the crook and 2 much connected the scorable 14th and 15th holes for a 67. He was astatine 7-under 206 on with North Carolina autochthonal J.T. Poston, who birdied his past spread for a 68.

Rahm was tied for 5th with Si Woo Kim and Jhonattan Vegas, who had two-shot leads aft 18 holes and 36 holes and began Saturday with 2 consecutive bogeys. But helium steadied himself and was inactive successful the premix until driving into the h2o connected the 15th for bogey and finishing retired his 73 with a three-putt going connected the 18th.

Pendrith leads Canadians 

Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., is the apical Canadian. He's successful an eight-way necktie for 23rd astatine 2 nether — 9 shots backmost of Scheffler. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., is successful an eight-way necktie for 49th astatine 2 over.

DeChambeau played successful the last radical astatine the Masters with McIlroy, and helium played bogey-free done 15 holes until a decorativeness that did much harm than helium realized.

"It outgo maine 3 shots and that's what happens present astatine Quail Hollow," helium said.

It near DeChambeau, Rahm and everyone other successful a pugnacious spot trying to marque up crushed connected Scheffler, whose past tourney was an eight-shot triumph successful the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.