Sunday 18 February 2018 20:56, UK
Bubba Watson put himself on course for a third Genesis Open title after he claimed the outright lead after a third round of excellent scoring at Riviera.
Watson's eagle at the first set the tone for his day as he fired a six-under 65 to hit the front on 10 under, and Patrick Cantlay holed from long range to get within one while Graeme McDowell remained firmly in contention and Dustin Johnson made a significant move up the leaderboard.
McDowell shares third with Cameron Smith and American duo Kevin Na and Tony Finau, with Johnson just four shots off the pace after he posted a best-of-the-week 64, but Rory McIlroy faltered on the back nine and ended the round 10 strokes behind the leader.
But Watson is the man to catch on the final day in California as he looks for his first PGA Tour victory since winning at Riviera in 2016, a winless run which has seen him slip to 117th in the current world rankings.
The two-time Masters champion got off to the perfect start as he knocked a superb second to within two feet of the pin at the par-five opener and tapped in for eagle, and he followed a steady run of pars with a sublime chip-in for a birdie at the short sixth.
Watson then jumped into the outright lead with three further birdies over the next four holes, although he carved his drive into trouble on the left at the 15th and was unable to stave off his only bogey of the day.
But he got the shot back with a well-crafted up-and-down at the 17th, and a cast-iron par at the last kept him two clear of the field until Cantlay capped a 69 drained a thrilling 55-foot putt for an unlikely birdie on the 18th green.
Cantlay had earlier stumbled to the turn in 37 before starting the inward nine with back-to-back birdies, and the composed 25-year-old enjoyed a grandstand finish to emerge from the chasing pack as Watson's closest challenger.
McDowell, playing the weekend for the first time since November, shared the lead overnight and holed a confident 20-foot putt for birdie at the second, but he blotted his card after missing the green at the par-three sixth.
The 2010 US Open champion got back on track with a birdie at the 11th before blocking his tee shot into rough at the 16th and dropping back to seven under, but he converted a precise wedge to five feet at the next and misread a good chance for a closing birdie as he settled for a 70.
Young Australian Smith completed back-to-back flawless rounds as he carded an eagle and four birdies in a 65, while Finau (68) and Na (67) rounded off the tie for third.
But Watson and co will be looking over their shoulders at the likes of Johnson and reigning FedExCup champion Justin Thomas, who will both go into the final round well within striking distance.
Thomas fired an entertaining 67 which featured an eagle, five birdies and three bogeys, while Johnson climbed 45 places up the leaderboard with a brilliant performance on the front nine.
Johnson did well just to make the halfway cut after he followed an opening 74 with a valiant 69, and he started his third round at the 10th and struggled to make much happen as he picked up a lone birdie at 11 and then reeled off seven straight pars.
But the world No 1 began his charge with a 10-foot putt for eagle at the first, and he made four birdies in five holes from the third before parring in to complete a front-nine 29 which hauled him into the top 10.
Fan favourite Phil Mickelson also eagled the first and went on to card a 67 to get to five under, while Scotland's Martin Laird is a shot further adrift after rebounding from Friday's 73 with a creditable 68.
McIlroy, however, will not be in contention on Sunday after another erratic display, which included a lost-ball on the 12th in his two-over 73 which saw him slide back to level par for the tournament.
The world No 10 mixed two birdies with a pair of bogeys on the outward half, and although he picked up another shot at the 305-yard 10th, where he drove through the green with iron in hand, his wayward drive at 12 led to a double-bogey six while he also leaked another stroke at 15.
