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Tony Finau shot a 9-under-par 62 on Saturday to take a one-shot lead at 16 under after the third round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open in Scottsdale, Ariz.

He will be paired in the final group on Sunday with Webb Simpson, who is in solo second place at 15 under following his 64 on Saturday. Another shot back are Hudson Swafford and third-round leader J.B. Holmes.



Xander Schauffele, Scott Piercy and Adam Long, who won two weeks ago at The American Express, are tied for fifth at 13 under. Spain’s Jon Rahm, the top-ranked player in the field at No. 3, saw his Saturday charge stall a bit with a bogey on the 17th hole. He’s six shots back at 10 under.

They will all be chasing Finau, who will be attempting to win just his second career PGA Tour victory. The first came four years ago at the Puerto Rico Open.

Finau made the turn in 4-under 31 and added another birdie on No. 12 before rolling in an eagle putt on No. 13. He barely missed another eagle putt on No. 15, settling for a birdie.

He then donned a Kobe Bryant Lakers jersey on the famous par-3 16th hole, and drained his second birdie putt on the hole in as many days after narrowly missing a hole-in-one with his sand wedge.

Leaderboard after Round 3 @WMPhoenixOpen:

1. @TonyFinauGolf, -16
2. @WebbSimpson1, -15
T3. @Hud_Swafford, -14
T3. @JBHolmesGolf, -14
T5. @XSchauffele, -13
T5. @ALongShot, -13
T5. @ScottPiercyPGA, -13

Full leaderboard: https://t.co/xYdhELrcLf pic.twitter.com/E0Y4Eg6oQO

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 1, 2020

Finau managed to save par from a fairway bunker on No. 18, and is now in prime position exorcise some Sunday demons – including losing the 2018 WGC-HSBC Champions in a playoff against Schauffele.

“I’ve got 18 holes, I’m in a great position and I’m looking forward to tomorrow,” Finau told CBS Sports.

Finau led the field in driving accuracy on Saturday after working on driver on the practice range following an inconsistent second round off the tee. What did he figure out?

“How to hit it straighter, apparently,” Finau told CBS. “I swung it nice off the tee and it took pressure off other parts of my game, no doubt.”

Simpson’s 64 on Saturday included an ace with a 7 iron on the par-3 12 hole, and he would be tied with Finau if not for a bogey on the short par-4 17th hole.

“I quit watching it because I’m getting older and I can’t see it once it hits the green,” the 34-year-old Webb told CBS of his ace. “So I didn’t event watch it. But the crowd got excited so I looked up – and I’m not even watching the green, I’m still watching the crowd – and I was shocked.”

An ACE from @WebbSimpson1! 🎯

He’s tied for the lead @WMPhoenixOpen. pic.twitter.com/sDkVHLBYTs

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 1, 2020

Simpson has a previous runner-up finish at TPC Scottsdale, a course he said plays firm and fast and suits his game.

“There’s guys within reach (of the lead),” he told CBS. “I would imagine that it’s going to take another solid round – even a low one – to win.”

Bill Horschel led the tournament at 15 under through eight holes, but went 6-over par for his final 10 holes to fall into a tie for 16th.

NOTES

Two-time champion Hideki Matsuyama rebounded from a 74 on Friday to post a 6-under 65 and is tied for 28th at 7 under. … Rahm is attempting to join Seve Ballesteros as the only Spaniards to reach No. 1 in the world rankings. He would need to win and have Brooks Koepka finish worse than fourth at the Saudi International. Koepka is tied for seventh place after three rounds. … Justin Thomas has joined Tiger Woods, Jimmy Walker and Dustin Johnson as the only players to hold the No. 1 spot in the FedEx Cup standings for 30 weeks in their careers. He is tied for 21st at 8 under. … Rickie Fowler’s previous best finish in five title defenses was a tie for 46th at the 2016 Dell Technologies Championship. He is tied for 40th at 5 under. … Jordan Spieth missed the cut at 1-over 143. He entered the week ranked No. 51, the first week he has been outside of the top 50 since 2013. He needs to move within the top 50 by Feb. 17 to qualify for next month’s WGC-Mexico Championship.

–Field Level Media (@FieldLevelMedia)