Sunday 21 January 2018 07:35, UK
Jon Rahm heads into the final round of the CareerBuilder Challenge just two shots off the lead as Austin Cook took control in California.
Rahm's position would have been better had he not made three bogeys in five holes towards the end of his third round on the Stadium Course, the toughest of the three courses in operation at the La Quinta resort.
But the entertaining Spaniard had earlier carded five birdies in a sparkling seven-hole stretch around the turn, and his two-under 70 was enough to keep him firmly in contention on 17 under par.
Rahm was particularly erratic on the par-three holes, making one birdie and three bogeys, and he said afterwards: "Three of the bogeys were on par-threes, which none of them was in a water hazard, which shows maybe poor club, poor shot, poor approach shot, some was just bad luck.
"But other than that I played good golf, a little bit of a survival day, you always get those in a tournament. I still had a couple of good shots there, I'm just hoping, looking forward to tomorrow that I continue to play the same way I did the first two days, especially on this course as it's a lot more demanding.
"It's only two shots, and going out ahead of the leaders you can make a couple birdies early and make it up really quickly. The first few holes can be a little tricky, I struggled in the first four and they're not the hardest ones on the course.
"So it all depends on the weather conditions. The course is firming up and I know if we have similar wind to today, if we shoot something under par you'll be way up there contesting it over the last few holes. So I'm not going to have a 10-under day, but hopefully I can keep charging on the back nine."
The world No 3 will return to the Stadium Course on Sunday looking to put early pressure on Cook, who blitzed the La Quinta course for seven birdies and an eagle while dropping only one stroke in an eight-under 64.
Cook, who won his maiden PGA Tour title at the RSM Classic in November, roared to the turn in 30 despite parring the first three holes, rolling in four birdie putts and pitching in for his eagle-three at the sixth.
The 26-year-old American ended the third day one shot clear of Andrew Landry and Martin Piller, with Scott Piercy alongside Rahm in a share of fourth.
Landry's 70 on the Stadium Course was a steady effort with 16 pars and a pair of birdies, while Piller mixed seven birdies with two bogeys at La Quinta.
Adam Hadwin, who fired a sensational 59 in this event last year, returned a 67 at La Quinta to get to 16 under, while Ireland's Seamus Power edged into the top 10 on 15 under with a 65 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course that featured five birdies in six holes on the back nine.
But Phil Mickelson's first outing of the year resulted in a missed cut as he struggled to a 74 on the Stadium Course to slip to four under par - four shots too many to make the final 18 holes.
