Fleetwood grabs PGA Travelers lead as top-ranked stars fade
England's Tommy Fleetwood fired a seven-under par 63 to grab a three-stroke lead after the third round of the PGA Tour Travelers Championship (Andrew Redington)
England's Tommy Fleetwood, seeking his first PGA Tour title, fired a seven-under par 63 to seize a three-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the Travelers Championship.
The 34-year-old Merseysider eagled the par-five 13th for the second consecutive day on the way to standing on 16-under 194 after 54 holes at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut.
Advertisement
American Russell Henley, who won his fifth career PGA title in March at Bay Hill, matched his career-low PGA round with a bogey-free 61 to share second on 197 with US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, who shot 63.
"It'll come down to a bunch of things really," Fleetwood said. "Being in the last group, I'm really happy with that.
"I'm happy with the work I've done. It's just an amazing opportunity to go out here tomorrow and hopefully it's my time."
World number one Scottie Scheffler, second-ranked Rory McIlroy and world number five Justin Thomas stumbled to fall well back, Scheffler and Thomas having shared the 36-hole lead with Fleetwood.
Advertisement
Paris Olympic runner-up Fleetwood, ranked 17th, has seven DP World Tour wins but none on the PGA despite 41 top-10 finishes.
Fleetwood sank a birdie putt from just inside 13 feet at the third hole and rolled in a 66-foot birdie putt, his season long, at the par-three fifth.
At the par-five sixth, Fleetwood dropped his approach inches from the hole and tapped in for birdie.
Fleetwood made a 19-foot birdie putt at the 10th then eagled 13, sinking a 30-foot putt from just off the green -- "13 has been very kind to me so far. I'd like to keep up with that."
Fleetwood, who had two eagles on the season when the week began, has made three in the past two days and only one bogey this week.
Advertisement
After driving the green at the par-four 15th to set up a a tap-in birdie, Fleetwood closed with three pars.
"It was nice to get off to a good start," Fleetwood said. " Bogey free is always good."
Henley made five birdies on the front nine to move within two of the lead and stayed on Fleetwood's heels most of the day, adding a 14-foot birdie putt at the 12th, a seven-footer for birdie at 13, a four-footer to birdie 14 and a closing birdie from just outside five feet.
"I did everything really well," said Henley. "It was a really solid round, hit a lot of great shots. Hope I can continue to do that."
Advertisement
Bradley, the 2023 Travelers winner, birdied four of the first seven holes, three of his birdie putts from outside 15 feet, and birdied three of the last six holes, a five-footer at the last grabbing a share of second.
"Every one counts because we're going to have to go out and shoot another low one tomorrow," Bradley said.
- Top-rated stars stumble -
Defending champion Scheffler struggled on his 29th birthday, making an triple bogey and a double bogey in the same round for the first time in his career in firing a 72 to stand on 203.
Scheffler made his first triple bogey since last August, missing the first green from a nearby bunker, then finding the rough.
Advertisement
Last month's PGA Championship winner found water off the eighth tee on the way to a double bogey.
Thomas, a two-time major winner, took a quadruple-bogey nine at the 13th, losing his tee shot into left rough and needing three shots to escape greenside rough, on the way to shooting 73 to stand on 204.
McIlroy fired a 68 to stand on 203. He birdied four of the first eight holes, his longest putt among them from 11 feet at the fourth, before a double bogey at 12 dropped him back, taking four to reach the green after going long with his approach.
js/bb
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Tottenham Hotspur Are In Talks To Land This Bournemouth Winger: Should Frank Get Him On Board?
Tottenham Hotspur Are In Talks To Land This Bournemouth Winger: Should Frank Get Him On Board? In a recent report, The Athletic's David Ornstein mentioned that Tottenham Hotspur are in talks to land Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo. It has been stated that Spurs have held discussions to bring the Ghanaian talent to North London in this summer transfer window. Semenyo's Impressive Run Of Form In The Premier League Semenyo enjoyed a decent campaign at the English club after he put in a handful of promising displays for them in the final third. The Ghanaian sensation featured in 42 matches for the Cherries last season, finding the back of the net 15 times and securing seven assists on all fronts. Advertisement The 25-year-old gave a good account of himself on the left flank as he averaged 3.51 shots per 90 minutes in Premier League football. He kept 32% of his attempts on target. However, Semenyo needs to find a way to improve his ball distribution in the opponent's half based on his pass success rate of 73.4% in the English top flight (stats via Semenyo's current contract at the Vitality Stadium will expire in the summer of 2029 which could make it difficult for Spurs to sign him on a cut-price deal this off-season. BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND – APRIL 14: Antoine Semenyo of AFC Bournemouth scores his team's first goal whilst under pressure from Joachim Andersen of Fulham during the Premier League match between AFC Bournemouth and Fulham FC at Vitality Stadium on April 14, 2025 in Bournemouth, England. (Photo by) Should Tottenham Hotspur Boss Thomas Frank Get Semenyo On Board? Semenyo has got the pace to cause a lot of headaches for his marker in the final third. He is a good runner with the ball and can engineer some inviting chances for his teammates to score. The Ghana international can even strike the ball with power from long range. He is primarily a left-sided wide player but can also play as a right-winger if asked to do so. Advertisement Semenyo already knows the Premier League well and won't take much time to adjust to life at Tottenham. We can expect him to enhance the quality of Thomas Frank's frontline. He is good enough to serve as an ideal, long-term successor to Heung-min Son at the North London club. At 25, Semenyo has his best years ahead of him which makes him a decent choice for Spurs to pursue this summer. He could even help the London outfit compete across all competitions in the coming seasons. Therefore, it is only logical for Frank to try and get Semenyo on board in this summer transfer period.
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Fox News
Sophie Cunningham calls out WNBA refs for not protecting Caitlin Clark after starting fight to protect her
Indiana Fever star Sophie Cunningham threw a jab at the WNBA and its referees Saturday. While speaking with reporters about her fiery and physical defense of teammate Caitlin Clark Tuesday against Connecticut Sun players, Cunningham called out the league for "not protecting" Clark during the phenom's young WNBA career. Cunningham became a viral sensation over the last week after committing a hard foul on Sun guard Jacy Sheldon, who poked Clark in the eye earlier in the game. A brawl between the teams ensued with Cunningham at the center of it for Indiana. Cunningham, Sheldon and Sun guard Lindsay Allen were ejected from the game with about 40 seconds left before the Fever took home the victory. "During that, it was just part of the game. I think the refs had a lot to do with that. It was a build-up for a couple years now of them just not protecting the star player of the WNBA," Cunningham said. "At the end of the day, I'm going to protect my teammates. That's what I do." Lack of equal protection for Clark by referees has been one of the WNBA's biggest criticisms since she entered the league last year. Clark's rookie year in 2024 included several controversial incidents in which Clark was roughed up by opposing players. Sometimes, referees failed to call a foul, sparking fan outrage. This season, in a loss to the New York Liberty May 24, Clark took contact from New York's Natasha Cloud on the final play of the game. Referees did not call a foul, prompting Clark to throw her hands up in confusion, and she and Cunningham barked at the referees as the game ended. A replay showed Cloud pushing her shoulder into Clark's the moment the ball came loose. The Fever were down by two, and a foul would have sent Clark to the free-throw line with a chance to win the game. Cunningham is taking matters into her own hands to punish players who get too physical, in her opinion, with Clark. And Cunningham also appears to be keeping referees on their toes. Former NBA All-Star Joakim Noah, who built a reputation as an "enforcer" during his career while protecting a young Derrick Rose, told Fox News Digital in September he would urge the Fever to get a player to protect Clark for 2025. "If I was the owner of the Indiana Fever, I would get a real enforcer in there to protect her," Noah told Fox News Digital. "Sometimes I feel like she is getting hit because she is a very talented person. … But, at the end of the day, we're in the business of winning games, so if I'm the owner [of the Indiana Fever], I'm getting a real enforcer in there." Cunningham has become a folk hero to many, and her popularity has skyrocketed in the days since the fight. Prior to Tuesday's game, Cunningham had fewer than 400,000 followers on TikTok. At the time of publication, she had 1.2 million on TikTok, and that number is only growing. She has an estimated increase of more than 300,000 followers on Instagram since the game as well, with a total of more than 800,000 at the time of publication. With Cunningham earning the nickname "the enforcer" for the Fever, fans counting on her to protect Caitlin Clark can rest easy knowing she is a black belt in the Korean martial art of Taekwondo. She earned the black belt at the age of 6. Her father Jim played football at the University of Missouri, and she ended up following in her dad's footsteps on the football field. A 2014 article by the Columbia Missourian reported Cunningham was the first female to ever score any points for the team in history, when she kicked two of four extra points in place of the team's regular kicker, who had torn an ACL. Cunningham even handled kickoff duties. "I was so nervous," Cunningham told the outlet. "I mean, I've never played football before in all my life. Right when I got the ball (on the opening kickoff), I couldn't hear anything. I just put the ball down and kicked it." Cunningham comes from a family of farmers and credits that upbringing for the person she is today, according to five-part feature series by the University of Missouri. "So much of our success goes back to what we learned here," Cunningham said of working on the farm. "We loved coming out to the farm to help. We found out how to work hard and work together. It made us farm strong." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
NBC Sports
2 hours ago
- NBC Sports
Fleetwood moves closer to first PGA Tour victory
Tommy Fleetwood is "playing with tremendous confidence" and leading the Travelers Championship after an impressive Moving Day (presented by Penske) that has him set up for his first career PGA Tour win.
