Grayson Murray takes one-shot lead at UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH

Things to Know

Raleigh native and two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Grayson Murray claims the outright 54-hole lead, bidding for his second win in three weeks

18-hole co-leader and outright 36-hole leader Kyle Westmoreland sits solo second entering the final round

Jorge Fernández Valdés is positioned inside the top five after 54 holes for the second consecutive week

Rookie Trent Phillips sits T5 after 54 holes and is in search of the first top-10 finish of his young career

Michael Johnson and Thomas Walsh, who both made the cut on the number, record matching third-round 65s for the low rounds of the day

Final-round pairings will run from 7 a.m. through 12:45 p.m. off the first tee

Third-Round Lead Notes

13: Third-round leaders/co-leaders to win UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH

- Davis Thompson (2022), Mito Pereira (2020), Byron Smith (2014), John Riegger (2010), Kevin Johnson (2009), Kyle Thompson (2007), Brenden Pappas (2006), Eric Axley (2005), David Morland IV (2003), John Maginnes (2001), Vance Veazey (1999), Glen Hnatiuk (1996), Michael Christie (1995)

2: Third-round leaders/co-leaders to win on Tour in 2023

- Ben Silverman – The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club, David Skinns – Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club

Grayson Murray (Leader / -13)

Logged rounds of 66-65-66 to earn the first 54-hole lead of his Korn Ferry Tour career (45 starts)

Only previous 54-hole lead/co-lead was at the PGA TOUR’s 2022 Puerto Rico Open where he was T1 with Rafael Campos and eventually finished T3

Carded a third-round 4-under 66 via five birdies at Nos. 3, 4, 7, 12 and 15 against one bogey at the par-4 second

Only has three bogeys through 54 holes, the fewest by any player in the field

Three bogeys came at the par-4s first (first round), second (third round) and 15th (second round)

Two weeks ago, clinched his second career Korn Ferry Tour victory at the AdventHealth Championship

In that event, entered the final round in solo second, two shots behind 54-hole leader Wilson Furr

Carded a final-round 4-under 68, including a double bogey on the 72nd hole, to claim a one-stroke win

That week, he had just two holes of bogey or worse all week, the fewest by any player in the field

Making his seventh appearance in the UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH

Has two top-10 finishes in this event, a T10 in 2016 and T2 in 2019 when he tallied a final-round 9-under 61, his lowest round in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned start

Has split time between the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR the last two seasons

Since turning professional in 2015, has 122 starts on the PGA TOUR and 45 on Korn Ferry Tour

Turned professional in 2015 following collegiate golf stints at Wake Forest University, East Carolina University, and Arizona State University

Finished T74 at Final Stage of the 2015 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament, earning conditional status for the 2016 season

In 2016 with conditional status, he earned a sponsor exemption for the UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH, the eighth event of the season, and placed T10 to earn more starts

Finished the 2016 season with eight top 10s in 17 starts, highlighted by his first career victory at the 2016 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship; went on to finish No. 2 on the season-long standings, earning his first PGA TOUR card

In his rookie 2016-17 PGA TOUR season, finished a career-high 66th in the FedExCup Standings, primarily supported by his first win on TOUR at the 2017 Barbasol Championship

Quotables

Grayson Murray on what it means to play here in Raleigh... “I think anytime you get to play in front of your hometown, which is very rare, it's always exciting. I really draw on their energy. You can feel the emotion when they're pulling for me and yeah, it's exciting, for sure.”

Grayson Murray on what he credits for the recent success he’s seen on Tour… “Just a lot of hard work. Kind of get what you put into it, that's what Tiger's always said and I'm a true believer in it. I kind of had a reality check with myself a little bit. I’m 29 years old now. I'm not young compared to some of these kids and my best golf I know is in front of me if I keep working hard and doing the right things off the course.”

Kyle Westmoreland on playing in the final group for the first time in his career… “You know, that's where you want to be, right? When you're playing your practice rounds, you're planning for a late Sunday and I'm glad to be there. I still have a lot of work to do and a lot of things I want to get better before then. It's awesome. Just keep doing what we're doing and try to clean a few things up for tomorrow.”

Notes

18-hole co-leader and solo 36-hole leader Kyle Westmoreland (2nd / -12) carded a 1-under 69 Saturday and sets a best 54-hole position in his Korn Ferry Tour career (making 33rd start on Tour this week)

- Recorded a career-low 7-under 63 in the first round to tie Matt McCarty (T7 / -8) for the 18-hole lead

- Second-round 69 earned him the outright 36-hole lead, the first solo lead of his career

- Previous best finish in a Korn Ferry Tour event was solo seventh at last year’s Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas Wichita Open Benefitting KU Wichita Pediatrics

- Making his first Korn Ferry Tour start of the year this week as he has primarily played on the PGA TOUR this season; in 19 starts on TOUR in the 2022-23 season, has logged five made cuts with the best finish being a T27 at the Cadence Bank Houston Open

- Earned his first PGA TOUR card via the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour Finals, finishing as the No. 25-ranked player within the group of 25 players awarded TOUR cards; became the first Air Force Academy graduate to earn a TOUR card

Jorge Fernández Valdés (3rd / -12) began the third round with four birdies and three bogeys in his first nine to make the turn at 1-under par; played the back nine bogey free with one birdie, finishing with a 2-under 68

- Currently No. 61 on the Points List, entered this week with four top-25 finishes in his last six starts

- Last week, entered the final round T4, but finished T23 after a final-round even-par 70

- Marks his best position after 54 holes since 2016 Servientrega Championship (solo third after 54 holes)

- Earned 2022 Korn Ferry Tour status by finishing No. 3 in the 2022 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica TotalPlay Cup standings after logging three top 10s in 12 starts, including two as runner-up and one victory

Brad Hopfinger (4th / -10) rolled in five birdies against one bogey to climb inside the top five and ties the best 54-hole position of his Korn Ferry Tour career (4th/2020 Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron)

- Bidding for his second top-10 finish in the last three weeks (8th/AdventHealth Championship)

- Making his sixth appearance at the UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH, he has two top-25 finishes in the event, highlighted by a T14 last year

Tom Whitney (T5 / -9), who entered the day in T6 position, maintains his spot inside the top 10 after 54 holes with a third-round 2-under 68

- Whitney, who is also a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, is making his 106th career start on the Tour and is off to the best start of any season; entered the week ranked No. 18 on the Points List and is in search of his fourth top-10 finish of the year

After starting the week with a career-low 64, Korn Ferry Tour rookie Trent Phillips (T5 / -9), tallied a second-round 69 and third-round 2-under 68, earning a spot inside the top five for the first time after any round this year

- Phillips made his professional debut in this event last season as a sponsor exemption but missed the cut after opening rounds of 68 and 74

Shad Tuten (T7 / - 8), No. 12 on the Points List, is in search of his fourth top-10 finish of the season

Matt McCarty (T7 / -8), who held a share of the 18-hole lead with Westmoreland, sits inside the top 10 for the second consecutive week (T4 at last week’s Visit Knoxville Open) and third time this season

- Entered this week with four top-25 finishes in his last five starts (T10, T22, T17, MC, T23)

Michael Johnson (T15 / -6), who made the cut on the number with a birdie on his final hole of the second round, carded a third-round 5-under 65, tied for his lowest round of the season

- Johnson’s seven birdies Saturday tied Nicholas Lindheim (T19 / -5) for the most in the third round

Thomas Walsh (T15 / -6) matched Johnson’s 5-under 65 for the low rounds of the day; Walsh’s 65 marked his lowest round of the season and his best since a first-round 63 at the 2022 LECOM Suncoast Classic