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Atlanta • Already established as the best player in golf, Rory McIlroy approached the FedEx Cup finale as though he had nothing to lose.
Except now he has so much to gain.
McIlroy was plodding along Saturday in the Tour Championship, frustrated by a pair of three-putt bogeys and a round that "wasn't much to look at out there" when his prospects changed quickly. He fired a 5-iron from 209 yards up the hill to 25 feet on the par-5 15th and holed it for eagle to tie Billy Horschel for the lead. McIlroy finished with a chip out of thick grass behind the 18th green to save par for a 3-under 67.
Horschel made two bogeys on the back nine and had to settle for a 69, still his 11th straight round in the 60s during the FedEx Cup, and still in great position to leave Atlanta with the biggest Sunday payoff in golf.
They were at 9-under 201.
And they had plenty of company in what was shaping up as perhaps the most enticing finish in the eight-year history of the FedEx Cup.
Jim Furyk, winless since he captured the FedEx Cup four years ago, had a 67 and was two shots behind. He would have to win the Tour Championship to have any chance of joining Tiger Woods as the only multiple winners of the FedEx Cup.
Another shot behind were Rickie Fowler (67), Justin Rose (66) and Jason Day (70).
Teenager Kim leads by 1 in round three
LPGA • South Korean teenager Hyo-Joo Kim emerged from a third round riddled with errors by contenders to lead the Evian Championship by a stroke on Saturday and in sight of her first major.
Kim hit four bogeys on the front nine before recovering for a 1-over 72. That she regained the lead was a legacy of her remarkable 61 on Thursday, the lowest score in major history, and her rivals also dropping on the leaderboard.
Karrie Webb mixed four birdies with three bogeys in a 1-under 70, leaving the 39-year-old one shot behind Kim and with a great chance of an eighth career major.
"Really just hung in there. The conditions were challenging today with the breeze," Webb said.
Mi-Jung Hur of South Korea was two behind Kim at 6 under overall. Overnight leader Brittany Lincicome of the U.S. dropped four shots off the lead after a 6-over 77, which featured two double bogeys and a triple bogey within the first seven holes. —
Saturday's results
Tour Championship
At East Lake Golf Club
Atlanta
Purse: $8 million
Yardage • 7,307; Par • 70
Third Round
Billy Horschel 66-66-69 — 201 -9
Rory McIlroy 69-65-67 — 201 -9
Jim Furyk 67-69-67 — 203 -7
Rickie Fowler 69-68-67 — 204 -6
Justin Rose 72-66-66 — 204 -6
Jason Day 67-67-70 — 204 -6
Russell Henley 70-68-67 — 205 -5
Ryan Palmer 69-67-69 — 205 -5
Chris Kirk 66-68-71 — 205 -5
Adam Scott 69-72-65 — 206 -4
Bubba Watson 67-73-67 — 207 -3
Matt Kuchar 68-71-69 — 208 -2
Gary Woodland 71-75-63 — 209 -1
Sergio Garcia 69-71-70 — 210 E
Cameron Tringale 68-68-74 — 210 E
Jimmy Walker 73-69-69 — 211 +1
Kevin Na 70-66-75 — 211 +1
Bill Haas 68-71-73 — 212 +2
Hideki Matsuyama 71-71-71 — 213 +3
Zach Johnson 68-74-72 — 214 +4
Martin Kaymer 73-69-73 — 215 +5
Patrick Reed 67-74-74 — 215 +5
John Senden 72-75-69 — 216 +6
Morgan Hoffmann 70-73-73 — 216 +6
Hunter Mahan 74-72-71 — 217 +7
Brendon Todd 70-75-72 — 217 +7
Webb Simpson 74-72-72 — 218 +8
Jordan Spieth 71-70-80 — 221 +11
Geoff Ogilvy 77-77-73 — 227 +17 LPGA The Evian Championship
At Evian Resort Golf Club
Evian-les-Bains, France
Purse • $3.25 million
Yardage • 6,453; Par • 71
Third Round
a-amateur
Hyo Joo Kim 61-72-72 — 205 -8
Karrie Webb 65-71-70 — 206 -7
Mi Jung Hur 66-69-7 — 207 -6
Anna Nordqvist 71-67-70 — 208 -5
Mariajo Uribe 68-70-70 — 208 -5
Na Yeon Choi 70-72-67 — 209 -4
Ha Na Jang 70-71-68 — 209 -4
Lydia Ko 69-68-72 — 209 -4
Brittany Lincicome 67-65-77 — 209 -4
Inbee Park 69-72-69 — 210 -3
Stacy Lewis 70-67-73 — 210 -3
Suzann Pettersen 67-69-74 — 210 -3
Lexi Thompson 70-70-71 — 211 -2
I.K. Kim 69-69-73 — 211 -2
Ayako Uehara 69-73-70 — 212 -1
Paula Creamer 69-71-72 — 212 -1
Minjee Lee 72-67-73 — 212 -1
Moriya Jutanugarn 69-68-75 — 212 -1
Jane Park 74-72-67 — 213 E
Karine Icher 68-73-72 — 213 E
Shanshan Feng 70-70-73 — 213 E
Julieta Granada 68-72-73 — 213 E
Amelia Lewis 70-76-68 — 214 +1
Charley Hull 71-73-70 — 214 +1
Sun Young Yoo 76-68-70 — 214 +1
Candie Kung 69-74-71 — 214 +1
Azahara Munoz 70-72-72 — 214 +1
Hee Young Park 72-70-72 — 214 +1
Line Vedel 70-72-72 — 214 +1
a-Jing Yan 71-75-69 — 215 +2
Marina Alex 71-74-70 — 215 +2
Ji Young Oh 73-71-71 — 215 +2
Lizette Salas 69-75-71 — 215 +2
Ilhee Lee 69-74-72 — 215 +2
Mina Harigae 69-71-75 — 215 +2
Jenny Shin 71-76-69 — 216 +3
Juli Inkster 69-77-70 — 216 +3
Morgan Pressel 70-76-70 — 216 +3
Kris Tamulis 70-71-75 — 216 +3
Amy Yang 68-70-78 — 216 +3
In Gee Chun 69-78-70 — 217 +4
Laura Davies 70-76-71 — 217 +4
Caroline Hedwall 70-73-74 — 217 +4
a-Emily K. Pedersen 69-74-74 — 217 +4
Sakura Yokomine 71-71-75 — 217 +4
Mika Miyazato 69-72-76 — 217 +4
Laura Diaz 75-72-71 — 218 +5
Jaye Marie Green 69-78-71 — 218 +5
Haeji Kang 74-73-71 — 218 +5