There’s not much separation in the John Deere Classic through three rounds at Silvis, Ill.
Lee Hodges shot 4-under-par 67 and moved into a tie with Lucas Glover on Saturday.
“Everybody is going to have to be aggressive, so I’ve got to hit it a little better tomorrow to achieve the ultimate goal,” Glover said.
Glover, the second-round leader, posted 69. The duo is at 16-under 197 with a one-stroke advantage going into Sunday’s final round at TPC Deere Run.
Ben Kohles (66 on Saturday), Jackson Suber (66) and Zac Blair (67) are one shot back. No member of that trio has won on the PGA Tour.
“I’ve been watching my friends win for years,” Kohles said. “I’ve obviously had a good run on the Korn Ferry Tour and won a few times there. I know what it takes. I just got to (suck it) up and do it tomorrow.”
Other than a 6-foot birdie putt on No. 17, Glover had only pars on the backside. The 2021 John Deere Classic winner and the 2009 U.S. Open champion, Glover sank a 57-footer for eagle from a bunker on the par-5 No. 2 and made his lone bogey with a tap-in at No.9.
Hodges played the back nine in a bogey-free 4 under.
“It definitely could have got away from me today, the tournament, but I played myself right back in there,” Hodges said. “So I’m really proud of that.”
Kohles, appearing in a PGA Tour tournament for the eighth time this year, recorded birdies on three of the final five holes.
“Nothing is really going to change,” Kohles said of the pursuit of birdies among the lead groups. “Looking to do the same thing, doing the same routine, and going at it again tomorrow.”
Most golfers had completed their rounds before a lightning delay with 10 golfers still needing to finish the round. Play resumed about 45 minutes later.
Blair, playing his ninth PGA Tour event of the season, posted an eagle on the second hole, though he gave that back with a double-bogey 6 on No. 11 marking the only glitch in his round until a bogey on No. 18.
Doug Ghim (65) is in sixth at 14 under and Zach Johnson (66) seventh at 13 under.
Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune (69) is tied for eighth place at 12 under with amateur Preston Stout (66), Chandler Phillips (65) and Max Homa (68).
“I’m just going to go out there and try to hit as many good shots as I can and see if I can get the putter hot and hopefully can end up at the top,” Stout said.
Other than Hisatsune, the leaderboard’s top 18 golfers is comprised of U.S. golfers, perhaps fitting for Independence Day.
“It’s pretty cool to be able to represent red, white and blue and get to play a golf tournament at the same time,” said 19-year-old Blades Brown (67), who’s among a seven-golfer cluster at 11 under.
The best round of the day was turned in by Rickie Fowler with 63, a mark that reflected just one bogey. He notched an eagle on the par-4 14th, with a putt from about 40 feet and is among those tied for 12th place at 11 under.
“I don’t think the golf course is as easy as some of the guys out here make it look, but I think it’s a good golf course,” Fowler said. “You have to kind of hit your spots.”
The start of the round was delayed because of weather-related concerns, then golfers were sent off on Nos. 1 and 10 in threesomes, so the round was on track to be completed sooner than initially projected until the suspension late in the round.
–Field Level Media
