Greensboro, NC – John Huh used three late birdies Saturday to join rookie Patrick Reed atop the leaderboard entering the final round of the Wyndham Championship.
Huh, the reigning PGA Tour rookie of the year, overcame a three-hour rain delay and an early triple bogey to shoot even-par 70 at Sedgefield Country Club, while Reed, the overnight leader, bogeyed his final hole for a 1-over 71. The pair of 23-year-olds sit at 10-under-par 200 through 54 holes.
Zach Johnson is poised for his fifth straight top-10 finish and possibly his first win of the season after a carding a third-round 66. The former Masters champion is tied for third place at 9-under with Bob Estes (68) and 20-year- old Jordan Spieth (70), who defeated Johnson in a playoff at the John Deere Classic in July for his first PGA Tour win.
"I didn't feel any nerves out there, which is rare," said Spieth. "I was leading the golf tournament on my own at a couple points in the round. So, that was reassuring to feel really comfortable and calm while in the lead. I'll try and get there tomorrow."
Robert Garrigus (68), Matt Every (68) and Brian Harman (69) share sixth at 8- under, Brendan Steele (66) is in solo ninth at 6-under and defending champion Sergio Garcia (70) is tied for 10th with Rory Sabbatini (72) and three others at minus-5.
With inclement weather in the forecast, officials moved Saturday's tee times up to 7 a.m. ET, but they couldn't avoid the rain, which arrived in the early morning and led to the lengthy delay.
The final group of Reed, Huh and Spieth teed off after noon and scoring proved difficult despite lift, clean and place conditions.
Huh quickly fell off the pace when he stumbled to a triple-bogey 7 at the second, and Reed opened with four straight pars before dropping consecutive shots from the fifth.
"It was pretty rough start for me, you know, because the second hole you don't want to start like a triple ... but, you know, I pulled my second shot a little bit and put myself in the wrong spot and instead of taking medicine I get too greedy and it turns out I make a triple there," said Huh.
Spieth also opened with four straight pars, but he played the rest of his outward nine at 1-under, with three birdies and a pair of bogeys, to turn with a 1-stroke lead at minus-10.
The lead was brief, however, as Spieth bogeyed the 10th to drop back to minus-9 with Reed, allowing Johnson to take over the top spot
Johnson went bogey-free over his first 14 holes, picking up five birdies along the way to grab the lead at 10-under. He failed to close strong, however, notching three straight pars and a bogey at the last to end at 9-under.
Spieth briefly got back to 10-under with a birdie at the 13th, but he bogeyed the 15th, then parred out as Reed and Huh regained their footing.
Reed bogeyed the 12th to drop to 8-under, but he birdied three straight from the 14th to grab the outright lead. Huh, meanwhile, parred 10 straight after his gaffe at the second, then reeled off three birdies in a four-hole span from the 13th to get within a stroke of Reed at 10-under.
That margin was then erased when Reed tripped to a bogey at the last.
"After that happened over there on the second hole, we had the third hole was a par-3 and I pulled a pretty good shot and I wasn't able to convert it but, you know, I told myself ... we got 15 holes to go and there's another 18 to go tomorrow so it's going to be long day," Huh explained. "So, that's what I tell myself there, it's going to be long day and be patient out there."
NOTES: This is the final event before the FedExCup playoffs start next week and players are fighting to get into the top 125 on either the FedExCup points list or the money list to keep their tour cards for next year. Robert Streb has the best chance to crack the top 125, as he is currently projected to reach No. 126 based on his current tie for 31st at 2-under-par 208 ... Charles Howell III was disqualified before the start of Saturday's third round for using a non-conforming driver during the second round. He shot 68 on Friday to move into a tie for 10th at 6-under ... The third round was suspended at 8:11 a.m. ET, with the restart coming at 11:10 a.m.
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