The battle for Tour Championship and FedExCup honours remained wide open after American Jim Furyk grabbed a slender one-shot lead in Saturday’s third round at East Lake Golf Club.
Joint pacesetter overnight with playing partner Luke Donald of Britain, Furyk carded a level-par 70 on another hot and humid day for an eight-under total of 202 in the PGA Tour’s final playoff event.
Donald, who twice edged a stroke in front of the American over the front nine, surrendered the outright lead with an ugly double-bogey at the par-five 15th on the way to a 71.
That left him in a tie for second place with 2004 champion Retief Goosen of South Africa, who birdied three of the last seven holes for a 66.
Australian Geoff Ogilvy, who barely slept overnight after watching television coverage of his beloved St Kilda team in the Australian Football League Grand Final, was fourth at five under after a 72.
Every player in the elite field of 30 began the week with a mathematical chance of winning the FedExCup, along with its enticing $10 million bonus, with victory on Sunday. Of those, Furyk and Donald were best placed after the third round.
“It’s hard not to put the FedExCup, and trying to win that, out of your mind,” Furyk said after offsetting two birdies with two bogeys. “But you really can’t focus on that issue.
“The only thing I can really do tomorrow is go out and try to win a golf tournament. Where I finish in the FedExCup is going to depend on how I play, but it also depends on how the rest of the players play and where they fall in the order.”
Furyk has his sights firmly fixed on winning his third PGA Tour title of the year.
“I haven’t had a three-win season in my career,” the world number six said. “It would be a good time to start.”
Donald, seeking his first tour victory since the 2006 Honda Classic, was overall satisfied with his round.
“It was frustrating to give away a couple there (on 15) but I hit a lot of good shots today,” he said. “I’m in great position. Still just one back, and this is the last Sunday of the regular Tour and I’ve got a chance to win it all.”
With sun-baked East Lake running fast and firm, Donald made the first significant move by rolling in a 12-foot birdie putt at the par-three second.
The straight-hitting Englishman narrowly missed another birdie chance from 10 feet at the third before bogeying the fifth where he missed the green to the left with his approach.
Furyk and Donald stayed level with matching pars over the next three holes before the latter again moved ahead by knocking in a seven-footer to birdie the ninth.
Furyk, who parred the first nine holes, slipped two strokes behind when he bogeyed the par-four 10th before taking advantage of Donald’s late stumble.
A superb approach to two feet at the par-four 14th earned Furyk his first birdie of the day and he then benefited from a three-shot swing at the par-five 15th.
While Donald ran up a double bogey after finding the right rough off the tee and a greenside bunker with his third shot before three-putting, Furyk drained a seven-foot birdie effort to get to nine under overall.
“It looked like it was going to be a two-shot swing, and Luke missed a little one there and it ended up being a bigger swing,” Furyk said.
The rock-steady American surprisingly bogeyed 17 after missing the fairway off the tee and hitting a poor second but he parred the last to stay one ahead.
World number two Phil Mickelson, who won last year’s Tour Championship by a commanding three shots, was seven off the lead after a 68.
FedExCup points leader Matt Kuchar, who could finish as low as 29th this week and still have a chance of landing playoff honours, was tied for 23rd at four over after a 72.
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