Davis Riley has been really good for the past two rounds in the Rocket Classic. Now, he needs one more.
Riley birdied the final two holes in a bogey-free round of 7-under-par 63 to move into the lead through the third round Saturday in Detroit.
“Staying present,” Riley said. “Very cliche but I think that’s going to be the key for me to get the best out of myself tomorrow.”
Riley is at 15-under 195, meaning he’ll go into Sunday’s final round at Detroit Golf Club with a one-shot advantage on Michael Brennan.
Riley has two PGA Tour victories, with the most-recent one coming in the 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge. His only top-10 finish this year came in the season-opening tournament.
“As you can see this course, if you’re in position, is yielding some pretty low scores so I think I’m definitely going to have to make some birdies,” he said.
Riley has gone back-to-back rounds without a bogey since carding three bogeys during Thursday’s first round.
Brennan (64 on Saturday), also with one top-10 result this year, registered birdies on four of the first five holes Saturday. His only bogey came on the final hole, costing him the position as co-leader after a chip shot was woefully short.
Otherwise, Brennan might be building momentum.
“Really felt confident on the greens and rolled the ball positively,” he said. “Just going to try to keep doing more of that tomorrow.”
Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard shot 9-under-par 61 without a bogey to rise to a tie for third place at 12 under. His score tied the course record that also was matched a day earlier by second-round co-leader Cameron Young.
Young (68), Chris Kirk (66) and Rickie Fowler (67) also are at 12 under. Xander Schauffele (67), Michael Thorbjornsen (66), Michael Kim (67) and Norway’s Kristoffer Ventura (65) are clustered at 11 under.
Young missed a 9-foot birdie attempt on the last hole, but he stayed in contention.
Other co-leaders from the beginning of the day didn’t fare as well. Patrick Cantlay shot 70 and dipped into a tie for 11th place, while Patrick Fishburn (74) carded only one birdie and dropped all the way to a tie for 48th at 6 under.
Hojgaard burst into the lead in the morning by playing the first 16 holes in 9 under. He was in 62nd place entering the round, making the cut by one stroke. He had birdies on both par-5 layouts.
“Felt like my whole game sort of came together today and that was good fun to finally experience that again,” Hojgaard said.
Ventura posted a pair of eagles. He drove the green on No. 8 and sank the putt and then putted in from off the green on the par-5 14th. In between the eagles, he had a double-bogey 5 on No. 11.
But he has worked himself into a decent position.
“Stay in my lane, just keep doing my thing,” Ventura said. “As cliche as it sounds, it’s just more of the same. As long as I leave here tomorrow knowing that I did my best, I’m happy.”
There will be adjusted tee times for Sunday’s final round based on a forecast that involves rain and storms. Golfers will be slotted into threesomes and going off on the first and 10th tees.
— Field Level Media
