ATLANTA — Rain and lightning led to the suspension of the third round Saturday at the Tour Championship at East Lake. Play will resume at 9:45 a.m. Sunday before the final round begins at 11:16 a.m.
Sunday will bring the conclusion of Xander Schauffele’s effort to catch leader Scottie Scheffler. He’ll begin the day one stroke behind Scheffler.
Schauffele first put some pressure on Scheffler with his terrific finish Friday, pulling within two strokes of the tournament favorite. Schauffele began the weekend four strokes behind Scheffler, who started at 10 under as the top seed under the Tour Championship’s staggered scoring format.
Earlier Saturday afternoon, Schauffele briefly caught Scheffler after he birdied twice over the first three holes. But he followed those with consecutive bogeys on Nos. 4 and 5, allowing Scheffler to regain a two-stroke advantage. Schauffele’s first swings on both holes found the rough. He also pushed a 6-foot putt on the fifth hole to miss par.
As Scheffler continued making par, Schauffele caught him again with birdies on the sixth and seventh holes. Scheffler regained the lead by sinking 12-foot birdie putt on No. 8. It remained status quo until play was suspended with both players on No. 12.
Sungjae Im is having an excellent weekend. Im began the tournament 4 under (T-6). He shot 67 and 65 the first two days and was enjoying a strong Saturday. Im had three birdies and an eagle on No. 6 after he nailed a 12-foot putt. He’s 4 under on the 14th hole when play resumes.
Patrick Cantlay still has a chance to become the first back-to-back winner at the Tour Championship. He was 2 under on the day when play halted, five strokes behind Scheffler. Cantlay had three birdies Saturday but had a bogey for the first time since Thursday when he missed a six-foot putt on the ninth hole. Cantlay is 14 under.
Rory McIlroy is fourth at 15 under — he had a great Saturday at 5 under through 16 holes — putting him one stroke better than Justin Thomas, Sepp Straka, Jon Rahm and Cantlay, who comprise a four-way tie for fifth. Each player is within striking distance entering Sunday.
