With just one hole left to play in his third round, Matt Kuchar was already in prime position at the 3M Open. But that eagle on the par-5 finisher certainly didn’t hurt, either.
Kuchar chipped in from 30 yards on the 18th at TPC Twin Cities on Saturday to finish his round birdie-eagle and sign for an eight-under 63, good for 15 under overall. He’s one-stroke off the 54-hole lead held by Jhonattan Vegas, who also shot 63.
Vegas and Kuchar will be in the final grouping on Sunday (along with Maverick McNealy), where there’s a lot on the line for the PGA Tour veterans. Neither are currently qualified for the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and for Kuchar there’s a historic streak on the line — he’s the only player to make all 17 editions of the playoffs.
He’s currently 155th in the FedEx Cup standings, but even now at solo second he’s projected to vault to 88th. A win would help him even more. The 3M is the penultimate event in the PGA Tour regular season, with only the Wyndham Championship remaining. The top 70 after the Wyndham advance to the playoffs — and are guaranteed to retain their PGA Tour cards for next season.
“It’s why I’m here and be at Wyndham as well, just trying to make sure to give myself as many chances as I can to crack the top 70, make the playoffs,” said Kuchar, who has made seven of 18 cuts this season. “One of those things you think, Gosh, I haven’t lost my job in a long time, I certainly don’t want this year to be the year I lose my job. It’s been a lot of work, but hopefully things keep going the right direction.”
McNealy, a former No. 1-ranked amateur who is still winless in his 132 career starts, shot 63 and sits at 14 under, two off the lead. Two other players, Patrick Fishburn and Sahith Theegala, the latter the top-ranked player in the field (11th), are tied at 12 under, four off the lead, and three players are 11 under.
Fishburn shot 63 on Saturday in the midst of a putter change. The 32-year-old PGA Tour rookie said his shoulders were too open, so he thought of ways to square them up, which he says is to grip the putter cross-handed. But that wasn’t his only tweak. He completely changed the way he gripped the putter, changed his putter and the loft. (He’s now using an Odyssey Ai-ONE Jailbird Cruiser.)
“It’s made a big difference,” said Fishburn, who was third at last week’s Barracuda Championship with the new flatstick. “I’ve been hitting it pretty solid the last few weeks, but the difference has been making a few more putts. Changes your game if you can make a putt.”
Fishburn made an eagle and just one bogey. He was in the final pairing last week, too, and he’ll have a late tee time come Sunday.
“Just keep it loose and light and whatever happens, happens,” he said. “You can only control one shot at a time, so just give my best every shot and see.”