PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Xander Schauffele focused and tried to achieve his best score on Saturday to recover from a four-shot deficit in The Players Championship. He succeeded.
A risky shot from the pine straw resulted in a birdie. A 60-foot birdie putt put him in the lead. A great up-and-down on the 18th led to a 7-under 65 and kept him one shot ahead of U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark.
“In the past, I would sometimes get ahead of myself and lose confidence when I shouldn't,” Schauffele said. “Today I tried to stay focused.”
Clark had his head down for a different reason. His sand wedge to an island green at the par-3 17th fell 15 yards short of dry land and he was shocked. However, he recovered and hit the next shot to 7 feet to make bogey.
“It's unfortunate to have your worst swing of the day on such an iconic hole with a lot of trouble,” Clark said. “But yeah, I followed it with a great swing and a great putt. Being in the final group tomorrow is huge.”
Schauffele had another flawless round, despite hitting only two fairways on the back nine in the swirling wind, finishing at 17-under 199.
Clark also saved par on the 18th for a 70 and will be in the final group, no longer leading but still in contention. He also put his bogey at the 17th into perspective, knowing it could have been worse.
“I hope that's a crucial moment in the tournament and we look back after tomorrow and see that as the shot and the putt that made all the difference,” Clark said.
For a brief period on a pleasant afternoon, it seemed like The Players could become a battle between Clark and Schauffele. But there were enough birdies, daring shots, and comebacks to make Sunday unpredictable.
British Open champion Brian Harman gained ground on the front nine and then made four birdies in five holes at the start of the back nine on his way to a 64. He was two shots behind.
Maverick McNealy and former U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick each shot a 68 and trailed by four shots, displaying both moments of brilliance and mistakes.
Scottie Scheffler, dealing with neck pain and ranked No. 1 in the world, kept his chances alive of being the first back-to-back winner in 50 years of the PGA Tour’s main championship. He finished with a 68, birdying his last three holes to extend his streak of subpar rounds to 26 this year. He was within range at five shots behind, alongside Sahith Theegala (67).
“I wouldn’t say I’m out of the tournament,” Scheffler said. “I’m definitely on the outside looking in, but a strong performance tomorrow could make a difference.”
Schauffele has only one hole over par in three rounds at the Stadium Course at the TPC Sawgrass. It was a double bogey on the 11th hole on Friday. Making progress meant making birdies, and he accomplished that, even if it didn’t seem likely at the beginning.
Schauffele, who hasn't won since the Scottish Open in the summer of 2022, missed a 4-foot birdie putt on the first hole, while Clark hit from deep rough to 5 feet and made a bogey.
Schauffele continued to make birdies, getting within one shot at the turn, catching up to Clark with a birdie on the reachable par-4 12th, and taking his first lead with a long birdie at 14.
However, he missed some opportunities towards the end. Schauffele went from deep rough to the soft sand of a bunker about 45 yards short of the green on the par-5 16th, which made an easy birdie unlikely. Then, after Clark went into the water on the 17th with a front pin, Schauffele hit the ball well beyond the hole and successfully lagged his putt across and down the slope to tap-in range.
He also ended up in the pine straw to the right of the 18th fairway, forcing him to scramble for a par from a thick collar of rough to the right of the green.
“When you make 58-footers, you kind of manage to save par on holes like 18 from the front rough, it eases some stress off different parts of your game,” Schauffele said. “Overall, it was a bit of a challenge. The wind was swirling a bit for both of us, and everyone out there on the back nine. I was just glad to stay in the competition and continue on moving day.”
Now he has two major champions right on his heels — Clark aiming for his second win this year and playing better golf than anyone but Scheffler, and Harman looking for his first win since he won the claret jug at Royal Liverpool last summer.
The surprise in the mix was McNealy, who had recently recovered from a back injury. He provided a lot of excitement down the stretch, starting with a 43-yard shot he sank for birdie on the 14th. He also made a 60-foot birdie putt off the green on the 15th, and then sank a pitch from 35 feet for par.
He hit a wedge into the water on the 16th — there was no recovering from that mistake — and then birdied the 17th, putting himself in the mix for Sunday.
“If this were the short game Olympics, I probably would have won gold,” he said. “It was a really scrappy day.”
