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TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | June 15

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – As the 2025 NBA Finals and NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs come towards a close, and both series going six, maybe, seven games, Major League Baseball grinds on through the dog days of June. By the 4th of July, it will be “Baseball Season,” but, now, the winter sports are holding on to the interest of sports fans and to loyal, yet dwindling, worldwide television audiences.

 

For both the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final, pundits are criticizing the rise of the small market teams. In the NBA, Oklahoma City (Thunder, the No. 47 TV market) and Indiana (Pacers, the No. 25 TV market) are playing some of the best basketball seen in years, yet talking heads are harping on the size of each city.

In the NHL Cup Final, small market (Sunrise, Florida) representing Miami and South Florida as a whole (the No. 18 TV market in the USA), now 2-2 (going into Saturday night’s Game 5) vs. Edmonton (1.6m people in market, no Nielsen TV ratings info).

Here’s a look at the tremendous NHL Stanley Cup promo from TNT:

To help promote the Finals (NBA)/Final (NHL), each league and its broadcasters created/aired terrific promo teases, with the NHL’s shining brightly.

The NBA went with a solid campaign, underlined by Nat King Cole’s incomparable song, “Unforgettable.” The :30 second spot airs during NBA programming but also popped up elsewhere to promote tune-in to the Indiana vs OKC series, and other playoff matchups earlier this spring.

The concept took a storyline created by Goodby-Berlin during the “I Love This Game” campaign, weaving in everyday acts and tasks by the everyday fan into the glorious highlights of NBA action in the playoffs.

The All-Time Greatest Sports Tease

Teasing John Malkovich by CBS Sports

The NBA promos struck a chord of an NFL pre-game tease from years ago, one I’ve highlighted in this space before, for sure.

This aired prior to the 2018 AFC Championship game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots won by the Tom Brady-led Patriots, 24-20.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: This coming week is one of WWYI’s favorite weeks of the year. It’s PGA TOUR comes to New England week with the Thursday morning tee-off at the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. Digital Sports Desk (and PGA Tour Brunch) will be on site to cover the tournament.

The Travelers Championship is a TOUR Signature Event and will feature a very strong field, including Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1-ranked player in the world and the tournament’s defending champion. This year’s event will be held June 16-22. In addition to Scheffler, every player in the Top 15 of the current Official World Golf Ranking is eligible to play – and 45 of the Top 50 ranked players – has committed to compete. That includes Rory McIlroy (No. 2), who completed the career Grand Slam by winning the Masters this year and also won THE PLAYERS Championship; Xander Schauffele (No. 3), the 2022 Travelers Championship winner and the reigning Open Championship winner; Collin Morikawa (No. 4); Justin Thomas (No. 5); Ludvig Åberg (No. 6); Russell Henley (No. 7); Sepp Straka (No. 8); and Hideki Matsuyama (No. 9).

“This is an incredible field of world-class PGA TOUR players coming to Connecticut this week, and the competition is going to be something golf fans won’t want to miss,” said Andy Bessette, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Travelers. “Thanks to the dedication and hard work of countless people and the support from the best fans on TOUR, the Travelers Championship has become a premier week in golf that continues to have a significant impact on numerous worthy charities throughout the region. We’re looking forward to another great tournament.”

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: The NBA and the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) today announced the Top 30 boys and 30 girls who will participate in the 15th edition of Basketball Without Borders / Asia, which will be held at the Singapore Basketball Centre in Singapore from Thursday, June 19 – Sunday, June 22. … USA Basketball announced the 2025 USA Men’s and Women’s 3×3 National Teams scheduled to compete at the 2025 FIBA 3×3 World Cup June 23-29 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. The 2025 USA 3×3 Men’s National Team features Henry Caruso, Mitch Hahn, James Parrott and Dylan Travis, while the 2025 USA 3×3 Women’s National Team includes Morgan Maly, Sarah Strong, Mikaylah Williams and Sahara Williams. On the men’s side, the veteran quartet won the 2024 FIBA 3×3 Men’s AmeriCup last December. … The National Basketball Association, National Basketball Players Association and 2K, a wholly owned label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. and publisher of the leading global basketball video game NBA 2K series, today announced they have agreed in principle to terms for a new multiyear global partnership expansion. In addition, 2K has also agreed in principle to terms to extend its longstanding relationships with the NBA G League and USA Basketball. The agreements will enable 2K to continue creating the most realistic, authentic and engaging NBA video game experiences. … Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak was selected to the 2024-25 NHL Second All-Star Team. This is Pastrnak’s second nomination to the NHL Second All-Star Team (2023-24). He previously received First Team honors in 2019-20 and 2022-23. … The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame revealed the matchups for the annual 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off. The event will take place on Saturday, November 8, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, and will feature a doubleheader: Providence vs. Virginia Tech and George Washington vs. South Florida.

CWS: Here is your printable bracket for the 2025 College World Series, a double elimination college. baseball tournament ongoing as we type and read: (HERE)

U.S. OPEN and FATHER’S DAY SPECIAL: For WWYI & PGA TOUR Brunch Readers and Subscribers, there’s a new golf training tool that’s making serious strokes on and off the course: XView AI – the first and only markerless app that delivers real-time, full-swing golf analysis using nothing more than your iPhone.

Just like a subscription to PGA TOUR Brunch, it’s the perfect gift for Dads who love their game and their gadgets, as the app is currently being offered in a limited-time promotion through Father’s Day 2025. *Buy 2 months at $49.99 per month for XView AI and get one month free (Offer good now through midnight PT on June 16th).

Enter code: xviewdad25

More Info at: (HERE)

THIS JEST IN: The Houston Chronicle is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Houston Rockets’ back-to-back titles won in 1994-95. During the ‘95 NBA Playoffs, the Rockets faced the toughest road to a title – maybe of all-time.

Let former Chronicle columnist Fran Blinebury explain: (Click Here for his column)

U.S. Open: Spaun Leads After 18

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OAKMONT, (Pennsylvania) – J.J. Spaun (1st/-4) carded his low 18-hole score in a major with the previous low: (67) coming at the 2018 PGA Championship/R4). Spaun’s previous low in a U.S. Open was (75) at (2021/Torrey Pines/R2).

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Thursday marked Spaun’s first career bogey-free round in a major and he was the lone player in the field without a bogey (or worse).

This is Spaun’s seventh time leading/co-leading after the first round on TOUR but he’s 0-for-6 in such instances.

South Korea’s Sungjae Im (T3) and Si Woo Kim (T3) each opened with 2-under (68) and each look to become the first Korean player since Y.E. Yang(2009 PGA Championship) to win a major.

Two-time U.S. Open champion (2017, 2018) Brooks Koepka (T3) eagled No. 4 on his way to 2-under (68). He looks to become the seventh player to win three U.S. Open titles (Jack Nicklaus/4; Ben Hogan/4; Bobby Jones/4; Willie Anderson/4; Tiger Woods/3; Hale Irwin/3).

Now seeking his third win in seven starts, Ben Griffin (T6) opened with 1-under (69) as he won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (with partner Andrew Novak) and Charles Schwab Challenge. Griffin finished 2nd in his most recent start (the MemorialTournament presented by Workday).

Making his 96th consecutive major appearance (the longest active streak), Adam Scott (T11) posts even-par 70.

World No. 1 and FedEx Cup leader Scottie Scheffler (T49) shoots 3-over 73; seeks his fourth win in five starts (THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson; PGA Championship; the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday).

125th U.S. Open | Leaderboard After 18 Holes

J.J. Spaun 66 (-4)

2 Thriston Lawrence 67 (-3)

T3 Si Woo Kim 68 (-2)

T3 Brooks Koepka 68 (-2)

T3 Sungjae Im 68 (-2)

Full Leaderboard: (PGATourCom)

PGA Tour: It’s U.S. Open Time

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OAKMONT, (Pennsylvania) – The United States Open is the 27th of 36 events on the PGA Tour schedule. It is the third of four majors in pro golf with only The Open in Britain remaining.

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Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau will attempt to be the first back-to-back U.S. Open champion since Brooks Koepka (2017, ‘18) and dating back before then to Curtis Strange in 1988 and ‘89. Both Koepka and DeChambeau are on the LIV Golf Tour.

The 2025 field includes:

  • The winners of the last 10 U.S. Open tournaments are in the field (2024/2020/Bryson DeChambeau; 2023/Wyndham Clark; 2022/Matt Fitzpatrick; 2021/Jon Rahm; 2019/Gary Woodland;2018/2017/Brooks Koepka; 2016/Dustin Johnson; 2015/Jordan Spieth).
  • A full house of 49 of the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking (Only No. 26 Billy Horschel is missing as he is recovering from hip surgery).
  • 32 players in the field competed in the 2016 U.S. Open when it was last played at Oakmont Country Club, including three who finished inside the top 10: (Dustin Johnson/1st, Shane Lowry/T2, Jason Day/T8).

World No. 32 Ryan Fox won last week’s RBC Canadian Open on the fourth hole of a sudden-death playoff over Sam Burns. That win moved Fox inside the Top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking to qualify for the U.S. Open. It marked Fox’s second title of the PGA TOUR season (ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic),

A record number of 10,202 entries for qualifying were accepted for the 2025 U.S. Open; qualifying is open to any professional or amateur whose Handicap Index® does not exceed 0.4.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Tiger Woods’ major championship-record 15-stroke victory at the U.S. Open (Pebble Beach Golf Links).

Oakmont Country Club (Oakmont, Pennsylvania) will host the U.S. Open for the record-extending 10th time (1927/Tommy Armour; 1935/Sam Parks Jr.; 1953/Ben Hogan; 1962/Jack Nicklaus; 1973/Johnny Miller; 1983/Larry Nelson; 1994/Ernie Els; 2007/Angel Cabrera; 2016/Dustin Johnson).

Oakmont opened in 1903 when it was designed by Henry Fownes. The course underwent a bunker restoration by Gil Hanse in 2023.

Adam Scott is making his 96th consecutive major championship appearance, dating to the 2001 Open Championship. Only Jack Nicklaus (146) has played in more than 100 straight majors

Johnny Miller’s final-round 63 at Oakmont Country Club en route to victory at the 1973 U.S. Open remains the lowest 18-hole score in a U.S. Open played at Oakmont and Miller is tied for the lowest final-round score in U.S. Open history (Tommy Fleetwood/2018, 2023).

U.S. Open | Tournament Facts

COURSE: Oakmont Country Club (Pennsylvania)

YARDS/PAR: 7,372 yards/Par 70

ARCHITECT/DESIGN: Henry Fownes

PRIZE Money – Purse/Winner’s Share: Apron. $21m/$4 million

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Bryson DeChambeau

PAST RESULTS: (link)

OVERVIEW: (PGATourCom)

FEDEx CUP Points to Winner: 750

SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedExCup #USOpengolf

U.S. Open | The Basics

The Tee Times at Oakmont start at 6:45am (ET) and go to 2:42pm (ET).

Weather: Thursday’s forecast in PA calls for cloudy skies but temperatures reaching a daytime high of 83-degrees. Winds 2-5 mph with gusts to 12 mph. Some showers expected Friday.

Fox Burns-Up in PGA Tour Playoff

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TORONTO – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – New Zealand’s Ryan Fox had a dynamic putt to extend the RBC Canadian Open and later used an awesome rip from the fairway to help secure a victory.

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Fox birdied the fourth playoff hole to win a showdown with Sam Burns and capture the tournament Sunday north of the border.

Fox notched a 4-under-par 66 in the final round, forcing the playoff with a birdie putt from about 17 feet on the last hole of regulation, on the way to his second career victory. Both triumphs have come across his last four tournaments.

Burns shot 62 to set the clubhouse lead and then waited a couple of hours in an attempt to notch his first PGA Tour victory in more than two years.

Burns and Fox finished at 18-under 262 at the North Course of TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley.

The duo played the par-5 18th repeatedly in the playoff until a winner was determined. They each recorded pars the first three times through.

“Sam and I had a bit of a pillow fight there for three holes,” Fox said. “It was some pretty average golf from both of us, some average putting.”

Fox drilled his second shot to the green on what became the last playoff hole, while Burns had an approach shot roll off the green.

“That shot I hit on 18 with the 3-wood was probably the best shot I ever hit,” Fox said. “It would have been nice to make (the eagle putt), but hey, I’ll take it.”

Fox’s tee shot on the first playoff hole was in a bunker off the fairway, but Burns’ potential winning putt from inside 6 feet was off the mark. Fox left a 12-footer to win short on the second playoff hole; Burns left his approach shot short on the third playoff hole, but recovered.

Fox had a bogey-free round, rallying with birdies on Nos. 14 and 15 to pull within a stroke. He played the 18th by lofting his second shot less than 175 yards down the fairway — clearly aiming to tie and trying to be in good position with his approach — and it worked out.

“I hit some great shots down the stretch in regulation,” Fox said. “Probably got a little lucky on that putt on 18 in regulation, snuck in the left door.”

Taiwan’s Kevin Yu posted 66 for third place at 17 under.

Cameron Young (65) and Matt McCarty (67) tied for fourth at 16 under. The trio of Andrew Putnam (67), South Korea’s Byeong Hun An (66) and Italy’s Matteo Manassero (69) tied for sixth at 15 under.

Burns had nine birdies and one bogey. The birdies included five consecutive holes to begin the back nine, and he tacked on one more on the final hole.

“I knew I needed to make birdie there to have a chance,” Burns said during his layoff prior to the playoff. “I knew that was important to make that one.”

With the last pairing just a few holes into the final round, a dozen golfers were within two shots of the lead.

Fox and Manassero began the day sharing a one-shot lead.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry, with an early tee time, stormed to the lead with an eagle on the par-5 first hole (a 4-foot putt) followed with three consecutive birdies. He was undone by playing the last 10 holes in 2 over, ending the round with 67 and the tournament at 13 under.

Yu gained the lead briefly with an eagle on the par-4 second hole on a shot from 91 yards out. He got going again with birdies on three of the last five holes, including the 18th.

“I’m glad I finished great with three birdies in the last few holes,” Yu said. “… Proud of how we fought today, and hopefully coming back next year will have better results.”

Young, who began the round with an eagle, said he thought he was in ideal position until his only bogey came on the last hole when his second shot went awry.

“I couldn’t have hit two better shots on the last hole,” Young said. “I don’t hit 3-wood that far, and it’s blowing straight into the wind, and it decided to bounce all the way to the back woods. I thought in the air I was going to have about a 12-footer to win the tournament, and it ended up somewhere I was going to struggle to make par, let alone make a 4. Pretty upset.”

Second-round leader Cameron Champ was back on track with a 67, putting him at 14 under.

–Field Level Media

PGA Tour: After 36 | The Memorial

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DUBLIN (Ohio) – In steady rain on Friday, Nick Taylor’s (68) tied his low score (R1/2021) as he completed his first bogey free round in 18 career rounds at Muirfield Village to tie for the lead with R1 leader, Ben Griffin.

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For Taylor, this is his third 36-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR and he’s 1-for-2 converting to a victory (2020 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am).

Griffin holds his third career 36-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR and is also 1-for-2 converting the victory (2025 Charles Schwab Challenge). Griffin is the second player to earn multiple 36-hole leads/co-leads this season (Scottie Scheffler/Texas Children’s Houston Open, THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson) and the first player to hold at least a share of the 36-hole lead in back-to-back weeks on TOUR since Nico Echavarria (2024 Baycurrent Classic, 2024 World Wide Technology Championship).

Brian Campbell withdrew after shooting a 79 on Thursday.

The Cut: The 36-hole cutline came in at (+5), underlining the difficulty of the Muirfield Village course that Jack built.

The Memorial Leaderboard | After 36 Holes

T1 Nick Taylor 69 68 137 (-7)

T1 Ben Griffin 65 72 137 (-7)

3 Akshay Bhatia 70 69 139 (-5)

4 Scottie Scheffler 70 70 140 (-4)

Full Leaderboard: (PGATourCom)

The Memorial | Tournament Facts

COURSE: Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio

YARDS/PAR: 7,569 yards/Par 72

ARCHITECT(S): Jack Nicklaus and Desmond Muirhead

OVERVIEW: (PGATourCom)

PRIZE Money – Purse/Winner’s Share: $20,000,000/$4,000,000

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Scottie Scheffler

PAST RESULTS: (link)

FEDEx CUP Points to Winner: 700

PGA Tour: The Memorial

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DUBLIN, Ohio – Ben Griffin (1st place at -7) earned his first career 18-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR. His previous best 18-hole position: 2nd/2022 RSM Classic/finished T29). Griffin’s 7-under (65) marked his best score in five career rounds in the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday (previous best: 72/R1/2023).

Griffin carded the lowest first-round score in the Memorial Tournament since 2019 (Ryan Moore/65/finished T33) and was the only player in the field to birdie each of the last three holes in round one (Nos. 16-18).

Griffin led the field in Strokes Gained: Around the Green (2.560) and Strokes Gained: Putting (3.843).

Griffin is staying “Hot,” as he entered the week coming off his first individual PGA TOUR victory at last week’s Charles Schwab Challenge and five weeks ago, won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (with teammate Andrew Novak) for his first career win on TOUR.

Griffin is one of four players with multiple wins on TOUR this year: (Rory McIlroy/3, Sepp Straka/2, Scottie Scheffler/2).

The Memorial Leaderboard | After 18 Holes

1 Ben Griffin 65 (-7)

2 Collin Morikawa 67 (-5)

3 Max Homa 68 (-4)

T4 Shane Lowry 69 (-3)

T4 Keegan Bradley 69 (-3)

T4 Nick Taylor 69 (-3)

Full Leaderboard: (PGATourCom)

The Memorial | Tournament Facts

COURSE: Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio

YARDS/PAR: 7,569 yards/Par 72

ARCHITECT(S): Jack Nicklaus and Desmond Muirhead

OVERVIEW: (PGATourCom)

PRIZE Money – Purse/Winner’s Share: $20,000,000/$4,000,000

DEFENDING CHAMPION: Scottie Scheffler

PAST RESULTS: (link)

FEDEx CUP Points to Winner: 700

Ben Griffin Wins at Colonial

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FT. WORTH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Ben Griffin got off to a fantastic start with an eagle on the first hole and secured his first individual PGA Tour victory at the Charles Schwab Challenge, shooting 1-over-par 71 on Sunday at Colonial Country Club in Texas.

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His one-stroke victory came with a 12-under 268 total. Griffin clinched the result with a 4-foot par putt on the last hole.

For the first time in the tournament’s four rounds, Griffin had a different score than Germany’s Matti Schmid (72 on Sunday). Schmid settled for second place.

Griffin, 29, was playing his 94th PGA Tour tournament. It’s the second victory in about a month’s span for Griffin, who combined with Andrew Novak to win April’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans team competition.

Bud Cauley shot 67 to move to third place at 9 under.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who was bidding for a third championship in as many outings, finished with 69, managing his only birdies on Nos. 1 and 11. That left him tied for fourth place at 8 under, joining England’s Tommy Fleetwood (68).

Griffin needed a putt from less than 15 feet for an eagle on the par-5 first hole. He rolled in a birdie on the par-4 second after nearly reaching the green off the tee.

Schmid, who has never won the PGA Tour, birdied the first hole but he was 3 over through six holes during an erratic round. Still, his birdie on No. 16 as Griffin was taking a bogey closed the gap to one stroke.

But Schmid ended up in the bunker on his approach at No. 17, leading to a bogey and a two-stroke gap.

Schmid holed out for birdie from the greenside rough at No. 18 to get back to 11 under and put pressure on Griffin to make his par.

Rickie Fowler, who began the day four strokes back and played as part of the final trio, struggled with a 74 and tied for 16th place at 5 under.

–Field Level Media

Schmid, Griffin Lead at Colonial

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FT. WORTH – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Ben Griffin and Germany’s Matti Schmid share the 36-hole lead at the Charles Schwab Challenge after they each posted 7-under-par rounds of 63.

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Griffin and Schmid stand at 11-under 129 through two rounds at Colonial Country Club. They take a two-shot lead into the weekend over John Pak (68), who was the first-round leader.

Chris Gotterup had a bogey-free 65 to move to fourth place at 8 under, and Akshay Bhatia (66) is tied for fifth at 7 under with Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune (67).

Griffin set the early pace by zipping around the course with eight birdies and one bogey, capped by a near-eagle at his final hole, the par-4 ninth. Griffin’s approach shot bounced right over the hole and spun back to 18 inches for his final birdie.

Schmid climbed to 11 under later in the day as he turned in a bogey-free card with seven birdies. Schmid has never won on the PGA Tour, while Griffin’s only win came at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans team event last month with Andrew Novak.

Rickie Fowler is in the mix after shooting a 64 Friday. Fowler started on the back nine and birdied six holes for a 29 before cooling off on the front.

He’s tied at 6 under with Doug Ghim (65), Brice Garnett (67), J.J. Spaun (68), Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo (66) and Englishman Tommy Fleetwood (67).

Scottie Scheffler (71) is down the leaderboard at 1 under par, and Jordan Spieth (71) made the cut on the number at even par after birdieing his penultimate hole.

Scheffler Wins Third Major

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CHARLOTTE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Scottie Scheffler was not at the top of his game but survived a mid-round scare from Jon Rahm to win the PGA Championship by five strokes at Quail Hollow Club on Sunday.

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It wasn’t as easy as many expected, but the 28-year-old Scheffler collected his third major title with an even-par 71 that was enough for the Olympic champion to pick up something much bigger than a gold medal — the huge Wanamaker Trophy.

“I’m just really proud of the way we fought this week,” Scheffler said. “I was battling my swing the first couple days. … I’m looking forward to celebrating this one.”

He finished at 11-under 273, while fellow Americans Bryson DeChambeau (70), Harris English (65) and Davis Riley (72) tied for second at 6 under. Venezuela’s Jhonattan Vegas (72), the tournament’s 36-hole leader, finished at 5 under alongside Canadian Taylor Pendrith (68) and J.T. Poston (73).

The large margin of victory disguised the fact that the final result was very much up in the air until Rahm self-destructed over the final three holes and plunged all the way down to tie for eighth at 4-under.

The World No. 1 started the day with a three-shot lead but several poor tee shots that he pulled on the front nine eventually caught up with him as he ran up three bogeys on the outward half, along with one birdie.

After Rahm, playing two pairings ahead, piled up three birdies in four holes around the turn, Scheffler arrived at the 10th tee tied for the lead.

But Scheffler got his driving back on track with a good tee shot at the par-5 10th, eventually making an up-and-down birdie from a greenside bunker to regain the sole lead. He did not let it slip again.

A 7-foot birdie at the drivable par-4 14th, where he got up and down from a greenside bunker, extended his lead to two shots and there would be no further drama, at least in the battle for victory.

“I just kept hitting it left (on the front nine),” Scheffler said. “I knew it was going to be a challenging day. Finishing off a major championship is always difficult, and I did a good job of staying patient on the front nine. I didn’t have my best stuff but I kept myself in it, and I stepped up on the back nine and had a really good nine holes.”

Scheffler bogeyed the first hole, but after a pulled drive at the par-4 second somehow avoided a clump of pines and ended in prime position in pine straw only 85 yards from the hole, he took advantage of the lucky break to make a birdie. At that stage it seemed the final round might be devoid of drama, but Rahm had other ideas.

In the end, the two-time major winner from Spain could not close the deal.

His birdie putt at the 13th hole somehow lipped out. Had it dropped in, the last few holes might have unfolded differently, but when Rahm bogeyed the 16th his race had been run. A 6-iron into the water at the brutal par-3 17th only confirmed his fate, and consecutive double bogeys on the final two holes marked an ignominious finish for the LIV player.

He shot 73 to finish seven strokes behind Scheffler.

“Yeah, the last three holes, it’s a tough pill to swallow right now,” Rahm said. “… Pretty fresh wound right now. But there’s been a lot of good happening this week and a lot of positive feelings to take for the rest of the year.”

Rahm’s fellow LIV member, DeChambeau, briefly held sole possession of the lead in the third round before unraveling on the Green Mile. DeChambeau carded four birdies and three bogeys Sunday, never quite threatening Scheffler the way Rahm did.

It marked DeChambeau’s fourth top-five placement in the past five majors, including a runner-up finish to Xander Schauffele at last year’s PGA and his victory at the U.S. Open.

“Always proud to top-five in a major,” DeChambeau said. “I feel like I’m playing good when I’m doing that but I mean, it’s disappointing not to get the job done because that’s what I came here to do.”

Scheffler has been so dominant since he burst onto the scene that only three years and 94 days have passed between his first PGA Tour victory and his 15th. Since 1950, only Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus took less time to accomplish the same feat, and only by a few days at that.

In his most recent start prior to the PGA Championship, Scheffler won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson tournament by eight strokes.

Since 1970, only one other player has won consecutive PGA Tour appearances by at least 5 strokes: Woods, who did so twice.

Scheffler is also the first player since Seve Ballesteros more than four decades ago to win his first three majors by at least three shots.

Scheffler’s performance here was a reminder, if any was needed, that though Rory McIlroy is golf’s biggest current star, he has competition for the title of the game’s best player.

Five weeks removed from completing the career Grand Slam, the Northern Irishman was out of sorts all week, finishing in a tie for 47th at 3-over 287.

– Field Level Media

PGA: Scheffler Surges Ahead

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CHARLOTTE – (Wire Service Report) Golf’s reigning Player of the Year, Scottie Scheffler, broke out from of a logjam of leaders with a brilliant finish to seize a three-stroke lead as the cream rose to the top in the third round at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club.

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On a day when strong, capricious winds tested the patience, judgment and execution of the game’s best, Scheffler rose to the challenge with a 6-under-par 65 that was little short of brilliant under the circumstances.

The world number one and two-time Masters champion posted an 11-under 202 total with one round remaining, while Alex Noren vaulted into second place with a similarly barnstorming finish for a 66.

The Swede, who birdied four of the final five holes, was alone on 8-under.

Davis Riley (67) and J.T. Poston (68) were four shots behind in a tie for third.

Scheffler was far from perfect, accruing three bogeys, but he more than made up for those blemishes with seven birdies and a brilliant eagle at the driveable par-four 14th, where he hit his tee shot to inside three feet.

He added birdies at the 15th, 17th and 18th holes to stamp himself as a hot favorite for a third major title.

Only a few holes earlier, five players had been tied for the lead.

“I hung in really well today,” Scheffler said. “I just battled really hard. Did a good job of staying patient and hit some nice shots. I definitely struck the ball a lot better today than the last couple of days.”

While Scheffler will clearly be the man to beat on Sunday, Noren, 42, cannot be totally discounted.

He holed a 30-foot bunker shot at the 15th, then an eight-footer at the 17th followed by a 15-footer at the last.

This is just his second start back since missing more than seven months with a severe hamstring tendon injury.

“Today was probably the best scoring day I’ve ever had,” he said. “I had so many bunker shots that kept me in the game.”

Noren said he had enjoyed time with his family during his enforced absence, but was delighted to be back in action.

“It’s good to take a break sometimes. It’s also great to be back with a purpose in life again,” he said.

Halfway leader Jhonattan Vegas of Venezuela fell into a tie for fifth with a bogey on Hole 18, leaving him at 2 over on the day, alongside South Korea’s Si Woo Kim (71) and Spain’s Jon Rahm (67).

Masters champion Rory McIlroy continued his struggles with a 72 to trail by 13 shots.

Even a 50-foot putt he holed for par at his 16th hole did not raise a smile.

Earlier, the start of the third round was delayed due to lightning in the Charlotte area. The round was slated to begin in twosomes at 8:15 a.m. ET. Instead, officials regrouped the players in threesomes and play began off the first and 10th tees at 11.43 a.m.