Aberg takes three-shot lead into Players final round

The Players Championship, round three leaderboard

-13 L Aberg (Swe); -10 M Thorbjornsen (US); -9 C Young (US)

Selected: -8 J Thomas (US), X Schauffele (US), M Fitzpatrick (Eng), V Hovland (Nor), B Harman (US), C Conners (Can); -7 R MacIntyre (Sco), S Straka (Aut); -6 J Rose (Eng); -4 S Scheffler (US), T Fleetwood (Eng); +1 R McIlroy (NI)

Full leaderboard

Ludvig Aberg did not provide the fireworks of Friday but will take a three-shot lead into Sunday’s final round of the Players Championship in Florida.

The Swede, who shot a 63 in round two to move two clear at halfway, backed that up with a one-under-par 71 to improve to 13 under overall as he chases the biggest win of his career at the PGA Tour’s $25m (£18.9m) flagship event.

But while the 26-year-old European Ryder Cup star serenely plotted his way around the famed TPC Sawgrass course, most of his closest challengers also failed to spark.

His playing partner, two-time major winner Xander Schauffele, drove the ball well but was wayward with his second shots into greens as he posted a two-over 74 to slip five off the pace.

However, unheralded 24-year-old American Michael Thorbjornsen shot a 67 to leap up to second on the leaderboard, on 10 under par.

He is one ahead of Cameron Young, who found water off the tee on the 18th and dropped two shots on the last hole to end the day as he started it, on nine under.

Young was not the only player to struggle on the last.

England’s Matt Fitzpatrick was 10 under par on the 18th tee, after birdies on the 16th and 17th holes, but a scruffy double-bogey finish took the shine off his round as he signed for a 69 to be joint fourth on eight under.

He is alongside 2021 champion Justin Thomas, who, playing in his second tournament since recovering from a back operation, overcame a triple-bogey seven on the sixth to card a 72.

Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre started round three at level par but posted the lowest score of the day – and his Players career – holing nine birdies in a superb seven-under 65 – to end the day six off the pace.

Justin Rose reached eight under after a birdie on the 15th but hit balls in the water on 16 and 18 as he finished with two bogeys in his final three holes to drop back to six under.

The top two in the world had ambitions of joining Jack Nicklaus as a record three-time winner of the event but both have fallen short.

World number one Scottie Scheffler put his erratic form of the opening two rounds behind him as he shot a bogey-free five-under 67, to get to four under.

But defending champion Rory McIlroy, who overcame a back injury to play this week, stayed at one over after a 72.

‘I think about winning a lot’

Aberg said he is ready to “embrace” the challenge of trying to close out his third victory on the PGA Tour despite being “nervous”.

“I think about winning a lot,” he said. “I think a lot about what it would look like, what it would feel like. I think a lot about the different scenarios that might happen. I did that in college, I did that when I turned pro and I still do it.

“We spend so much time preparing, so why wouldn’t we think of what it would actually mean to win.

“So naturally that’s what I’m going to do [on Saturday evening]. But does it change anything for me [on Sunday]? I don’t think so.

“I’ll definitely be nervous. I’ve been nervous the past three days. Whoever says they don’t get nervous is not really true to themselves.”

Aberg looked set to have a four-shot advantage for the final round after hitting his second shot on the par-four 18th 25ft from the hole.

But he raced his birdie putt past and failed to knock in a seven-footer for par as he made a rare mistake.

It was just a second bogey of the round – and third of the championship – for the Swede, who lives locally and calls Sawgrass his home course.

“The three-putt on 18 stings, annoys me, but I started the day with a two-shot lead and ended with a three, so that’s a positive,” he said.

The highlight of his round was an eagle-three on the downwind par-five 11th. He fired his second shot from 238 yards to 17ft before holing the putt.

That moved Aberg four clear but he was unable to build on that momentum as his rivals jostled for position behind him.

‘Cool two hometown guys are in final group’

Young looked the most likely to threaten Aberg.

He twice moved to 11 under – first with a 46ft birdie putt on the 13th, and then with a tap-in on the 17th (after dropping a shot at the 15th). But his errant drive down the last cost him a place alongside Aberg in Sunday’s final pairing.

That goes to Thorbjornsen, the world number 59, who, like Aberg, lives near the course, which is just outside Jacksonville.

“I love playing golf with him,” said the American, who had three birdies and an eagle in his opening 11 holes to reach 10 under par before matching two bogeys with two birdies in the closing holes.

“We go way back to junior golf. We’ve played a lot of college golf together. He was one of the guys in college that I looked up to. It’s pretty cool two hometown guys are in the final group.”

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