Robert MacIntyre four clear of Scottie Scheffler at the BMW Championship; Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have disappointing rounds
MacIntyre had come under pressure from Scottie Scheffler during the third round, with the American ultimately taking one shot out of MacIntyre's half-way advantage, but he will take a significant dose of confidence into Sunday after his closing birdie gave him a little extra breathing space.
After two blistering rounds of 62 and 64 on the first two days, Saturday's 68, that leaves him at 16 under, was much more of a grind for MacIntyre, who struggled to find the fairways of the Caves Valley course on the third time around.
He bogeyed the first after a wayward second shot before a birdie on the par-five fourth, only to find himself in the trees on the fifth, ultimately saving par.
MacIntyre, who is on the verge of joining McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose in qualifying for Europe's Ryder Cup team, birdied again on the ninth and was clearly fired up, appearing to gesture unhappily at the crowd after sinking a putt to save par on the 14th.
He narrowly missed a birdie putt on the 17th but it was all smiles on the 18th.
"It was a tough, tough start," MacIntyre said on Sky Sports. "Going out with that lead is difficult but if I do my job well these guys have got to do really well to catch me.
"A 68 today, it was a struggle at times, through five or six holes, but it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog and I've got all the fight."
Asked about his clash with the galleries on the 14th, MacIntyre laughed as he talked about Ryder Cup rivalries.
"We're in America, playing against their sweetheart Scottie, who I get on well with, he's a great guy," he said. "I expected it today and I expect it again tomorrow. You give me crap, I'll give you crap back. I'm not scared of that."
Scheffler, on 12 under, had closed the gap with birdies on the fourth, seventh and 11th holes, but a missed putt saw him bogey the 12th. He birdied again on the 14th to sign for a 67 that keeps him firmly in the hunt going into the final day.
Sweden's Ludvig Aberg will look to make it a three-horse race after his birdie on the 18th brought him within two shots of Scheffler.
Sam Burns and Harry Hall are two further shots back in a tie for fourth, one shot ahead of Fleetwood and Maverick McNealy
Tied for 14th on three under is McIIroy after a 71. The Masters Champion started with a double-bogey six on the first and while he picked up shots on four and eight, he gave one back on six. It was a similar mixed bag on the way home; a bogey on 10 was followed by a birdie. Holes 15 and 16 produced bogey/birdie respectively.
As for Lowry, he has work to do on Sunday if he wants to make the top-30. At four over, he currently occupies a share of 34th spot on four over after a disappointing 75.
A double-bogey five on 17 and a dropped shot at the last compounded a round to forget for the Offaly man.
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