Sepp Straka made three birdies and two eagles on par 5s for an 8-under 64 and held off a slight error from Scottie Scheffler on Saturday to advance to the final round of the Hero World Challenge.
Straka eagled the par-5 6th and played some great golf to keep pace with Scheffler. Scheffler had five straight triples on the scorecard to start the third round (an eagle, two birdies and two pars) and was 9 under par for the 15-hole round.
Scheffler, seeking his third straight win at Albany Golf Club, has stumbled over the final three holes each day this week with a double bogey on the 16th hole on Thursday, a bogey on the 16th on Friday, and a bogey-par-bogey.
He still has a 65, is 16 under par and will be in the final group with Straka on Sunday, one stroke behind the Austrian.
Scottie Scheffler is one step away from the lead heading into the final round.
Straka was impounded on the par 5 hole. Along with a chip-in on the sixth hole, he sank an 18-foot eagle putt on the windward par-5 15th. He also hit a 3-wood that landed perfectly in front of the green on the par-5 ninth and rolled to 15 feet for a two-putt birdie.
He trailed Scheffler by 3 strokes through 5 holes and by 2 strokes with 4 holes remaining. However, Straka recorded 198 strokes, 18 under par, and no bogeys on this day.
“He definitely did it quickly,” Straka said of the world No. 1 player. “I didn’t think he was going to miss any putts there, but because it’s golf, there’s usually a lot of even results, so I just tried to focus on my game.”
The only par 4 where Straka birdied was the seventh, where the tee was moved back. This prevented players from attempting to drive onto the green and instead tested it with a wedge to the dangerous left back pin. Straka caught it and hit it to 7 feet.
Scheffler, who had gone left of the 16 fairway during his first two rounds (one of which earned him a penalty kick for bushes), found the short grass this time and wasn’t much better. He ended up hitting the bunker in an awkward position, burying the ball in the sand, and resulting in a bogey.
He also dropped a shot on the 18th, missing the right side of the green (the water is on the left) and leaving a tricky pitch on the slope.
“We had a few unfortunate breaks, but overall it was a really good performance,” Scheffler said.
Alex Noren (67) and Hideki Matsuyama (68) are three strokes behind Straka, while JJ Spaun and Wyndham Clark are four strokes behind with 69 each.
Stay tuned for continued coverage of the Hero World Challenge. Sky Sports Golf From 4:30 PM on Sunday.
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