Patrick Cantlay fires 11-under 60 to tie the lead with Tom Kim in Las Vegas
Patrick Cantlay narrowly misses out on a magic 59 but he shares the 54-hole lead with Tom Kim at the Shriners Children's Open.
Patrick Cantlay narrowly missed out on a magic round of 59 after firing a stunning 11-under 60 in the third round of the Shriners Children's Open on the PGA Tour.
Cantlay, who won this tournament in 2017, stood over a 20-footer for birdie on the 18th green but his putt agonisingly slipped past the left side of the cup.
Nevertheless, it was a round of 60 (matching his career low score on the PGA Tour) and it vaulted Cantlay to 19-under par alongside South Korea's Tom Kim, who carded an equally impressive 62.
"All in all played really well today, but I needed to to get it into position to win this tournament," said Cantlay.
"I have a good game plan for this golf course and in general I hit a bunch of drivers, and if you play from the fairway you can have a ton of looks."
There have been 12 sub-60 rounds on the PGA Tour. World No.1 Scottie Scheffler was the last player to achieve that feat with a round of 59 in the second round of the 2020 FedEx Cup St Jude Championship.
ELEVENTH birdie of the day for @Patrick_Cantlay pic.twitter.com/ZoemQ6x5TB
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 8, 2022
Cantlay opened with four straight birdies before adding another at the sixth to move into a tie for the lead.
He then two-putted for birdie on the par-5 9th to go out in 29 shots and assume the outright lead in the tournament for the first time all week.
Cantlay made pars at the 10th and 11th but then quickly got back on the birdie train at 12 and 13. He then burned the right edge with a birdie putt at 14 before making a trio of consecutive birdies from the 15th.
The in-form American will now join in-form Kim for a final-round tussle in Las Vegas.
Cantlay is looking to win a second title in his last three starts on the PGA Tour, while Kim is going in search of a second win from his last four starts.
Matthew NeSmith lies three shots off the pace on 16-under par alongside Chile's Mito Pereira, who has been heavily linked with a move to LIV Golf in recent weeks.
Defending champion Sungjae Im raced into contention with a 63 to move up to 15-under par alongside compatriot SH Kim.
