The closing stretch at the 3M Open on Saturday provided plenty of intrigue with a drivable par-4, a tough par-3 that was playing to nearly the same scoring average as the par-4 and a par-5 closer where anything could — and did — happen. It’s a fabulous three-hole stretch and it shook up the leaderboard at the very end of the day in Round 3.
Michael Thompson and Richy Werenski retain the co-lead they held on Friday evening after both shot 68s on Saturday (roller-coaster 68s, but 68s nonetheless). Let’s take a look at the rest board and who has a chance come Sunday evening at TPC Twin Cities.
T1. Michael Thompson (-15) — It almost came apart for Thompson over the last few holes. After a lipped-out birdie at the 15th, he had to get up and down on No. 16, made bogey on No. 17 and hit it in the water off the tee at the 18th. Still, he somehow leads after getting up and down again from the bunker on No. 18. His swing looked really good for the first 15 or so holes, but it got a little dicey coming home. Thompson is a nice player, but that’s something to remember come the final round.
T1. Richy Werenski (-15) — Incredibly, as Werenski looked to be fading a bit on Saturday, he rebounded by making birdie at three of his last four holes and one-putted all four of them. I keep not believing in Werenski, and he keeps proving me wrong. A win on Sunday — the first of his career — would be a fabulous story in what has been a dream week thus far for him.
T3. Tony Finau, Charl Schwartzel (-13) — Finau did what he needed to do on Saturday: he kept the lead within striking distance and didn’t play his way out of it by trailing by four or five going into the final round. He’s still in control of the tournament despite driving it so poorly on Saturday. Closing time now for Finau, though. He’s had 33 (thirty-three!) top 10s in his last four years without a win. He needs to change that number at some point soon if he truly wants to be considered one of the 10-15 best players in the world.
5. Max Homa (-12) — After a bumpy Friday, Homa was lights out on Saturday with a stellar 64. He spoke after his round about how he’s felt good about the swing, but he hasn’t seen anything fall on key putts. That’s changed this week as he’s currently eighth in putting.
“I know where my game is typically all the time and I’ve known it’s been really good,” Homa said. “Like I said a couple days ago, the putts weren’t going in and it made me feel kind of anxious at all times that you just can’t really a mistake. Finally get to feel like I free up the swing and I’m hitting it even better than I was before, I guess. Then making some putts on top always helps.”
T6. Cameron Tringale, Denny McCarthy, Alex Noren, Harris English, Ryan Moore, Nick Watney, Cameron Davis (-11) — English was my pick for the week, and he very quietly just shot 65-67 on Friday and Saturday to rocket up the leaderboard after a poor first round. He’ll likely need something in the mid-60s again on Sunday to have a chance to win, but the best season of his career will likely move forward with a sixth top 10 in just 15 events.
CBS Sports was with you the entire way updating this story with the latest scores, updates and highlights from Moving Day. Check out the live scores at the top of this story or a more detailed leaderboard.
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