Olympia Fields, Ill, Aug 20 Scottie Scheffler made a bunch of birdies in his 6-under 64 that gave him a share of the lead with Matt Fitzpatrick (66) in a BMW Championship that is wide open.
Fitzpatrick looked set for the lead but fell into a tie on the 18th when he went from the bunker to the rough and after coming out from under a tree, he got to the edge of the green and then had a 5-foot bogey putt.
Scheffler and Fitzpatrick were at 11-under 199, one shot clear of Open Championship winner Brian Harman (67).
American Indian Sahith Theegala (69) needs a solid final round to move from his current projected 34th place to inside Top 30 for a second straight entry into the Tour Championships.
For almost half-dozen players the fight is to finish in the top 30 in the FedExCup that allows them to advance to the TOUR Championship next week at East Lake.
Among those on the bubble is Jordan Spieth (72). Currently T-30 and projected to be 31st, he needs to get into Top-30 for the Tour Championship.
Also on stake are some of the six automatic spots in the Ryder Cup, with the BMW Championship as the final qualifying event. Strong finishes by the likes of Max Homa and Xander Schauffele could get them in position.
Scheffler, with at least a share of the 54-hole lead for the first time since he won THE PLAYERS Championship five months ago, had three birdies in first five holes. He responded with three straight birdies to start the back nine and had one more on the 15th plus some good par saves.
Homa had a triple bogey on the front and two bogeys on the back nine against four birdies in his 71 and dropped to fourth, one behind Harman, who had four birdies and one bogey, all between the fourth and the 10th.
McIlroy opened with four birdies in six holes when his round came to a halt, particularly on the 10th green when he three-putted from 15 feet. He carded 67 and was Tied-5th with Viktor Hovland (65).
Homa, meanwhile, now shares the North course record with Sam Burns, who had eight birdies and a clean card for a 62. That was valuable because it put Burns in the group at 7-under 203 and it revived his chances of going to East Lake.
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