WM Phoenix Open title, No. 1 ranking in sight for Scheffler

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jon Rahm had waded into the gallery right of the 11th fairway; Adam Hadwin assessed his lie in the rough; and a rowdy fan kept hollering facetiously about how much he liked Scottie Scheffler’s green shirt.

In a tan shirt that matched the TPC Scottsdale hardpan – he was the only one in his group not wearing green on the tournament’s “green out” day – Scheffler kept his ball in the fairway, his mind on the task, and his cool amid the chaos. The defending WM Phoenix Open champion shot a third-round 68, has a two-shot lead over Rahm (68) and Nick Taylor (67), and would be the first to successfully defend here since Hideki Matsuyama in 2017.

“I just kind of grinded,” said Scheffler, whose victory here a year ago touched off a run of four wins in six starts, a performance that ultimately saw him voted PGA TOUR Player of the Year. “I didn’t hit as many fairways as I wanted to.”

After hitting 10 of 14 fairways in each of the first two rounds, Scheffler found the short grass only five times in the third and hurried off to the driving range before darkness fell. But he was crafty and resilient with the rest of his clubs. After missing a birdie putt from inside 4 feet at the par-5 third hole, he birdied the par-3 fourth from 15 feet.

Rahm, who was an All-American for Arizona State and lives in Scottsdale, was occasionally wild off the tee, as well, hitting just six fairways Saturday. He, too, scrambled nicely, and can reasonably expect to be the people’s choice Sunday. He has finished T16 or better in all seven previous starts here. Is he destined to finally win?

“I have had good finishes, but I've never gone down the stretch into the back nine with a chance to win,” said Rahm, whose curling, left-to-right birdie putt at the par-3 16th hole set off a wild celebration. “For the most part I've actually played a really good back nine to put myself in that top 10. My best finish doing exactly that was when I was an amateur.

“So hopefully tomorrow I can get off a better start,” he added, “play a good front nine and go in that back nine with a solid chance of getting it done.”

A victory Sunday would give him three wins in his last four PGA TOUR starts.

Jordan Spieth, who hit all 18 greens in regulation in his second-round 63, shot a third-round 69 to reach 10 under par. He’s tied with Adam Hadwin (71) and three off the lead. Spieth’s third round featured a sensational bunker shot from 76 yards at the drivable par-4 17th hole. Hit the dreaded middle-distance sand shot short and he would wind up in the back bunker; hit it long and he would wind up in the water. He swung and watched as the ball hit, spun and stopped 2 feet, 10 inches from the hole.

Spieth allowed that it was an uncomfortable shot, but he’s “comfortable being uncomfortable.” He’s also liking his tee-to-green game and credited work he did with his coach on Monday after flying into town from the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

“I’ve got four 3-putts in three days,” he said. “I need to eliminate those (Sunday) because the ball striking has been there.”

In a break that perhaps made up for his ball getting blown off a green the day before, Scheffler pulled his tee shot at the drivable par-4 17th hole only to watch as his ball stopped on the collar, inches from rolling down into the pond. He got up and down for birdie, pulling away again after Taylor and Rahm had narrowed the gap.

The tournament got back on track after a lengthy first-round frost delay Thursday. Play was suspended due to darkness Friday night with the entire afternoon wave yet to finish their second rounds, and they came back Saturday to resume play at 7:45 a.m.

Scheffler and Rahm were in the wave that completed the second round Friday. Each could return to the top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), depending on how they play relative to the performance of No. 1 Rory McIlroy.

No. 2 Scheffler could retake No. 1 by winning if McIlroy (third-round 70, 3 under, tied for 28th) finishes worse than solo third – or by finishing second alone with McIlroy finishing worse than 36th alone, provided Rahm doesn’t win. No. 3 Rahm could retake No. 1 by winning if McIlroy finishes worse than a three-way tie for second, or by finishing solo second at the same time that McIlroy finishes worse than 47th alone – provided Scheffler doesn’t win.

“Right now, I'm ranked No. 2, but I would say I'm not playing the second-best golf in the world,” Scheffler said before the tournament. “I think Rory and Jon are pretty much neck-and-neck for playing the best golf in the world right now, so the rankings are funny. It's just an algorithm … but I don't like being No. 2. I'd rather be No. 1.”

He might get his wish with a win Sunday.