Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama shot matching 69s on Saturday and will enter the final round of the BMW Championship sharing a two-shot lead.
Entering the third day at Olympia Fields, Johnson and Matsuyama were deadlocked at even-par 140, but after five holes, the 28 year old Japanese found himself four clear of his American counterpart after a sizzling 3-under start, coupled with a 1-over for DJ.
As Matsuyama cooled off, though, DJ got hot and erased the four-stroke deficit over the final 13 holes to grab a share the marquee at 1-under par.
“It felt like I played really solid. Hit a lot of greens, had a lot of good looks at birdie. Even hit a lot of really good putts that I thought were going in,” said Johnson, who is looking to go back to back in the playoffs.
“Had a few lip-outs there, but all in all, it was a really solid day in tough conditions, and obviously this golf course is very difficult.”
After his round, Matsyuama, who is searching for his first win since the 2017 WGC-Bridgestone, said, “I played great these three days, so I just need to hit the ball well tomorrow and putt well and see where I’m at.”
A trio compromised of Joaquin Niemann (68), Adam Scott (70), and Mackenzie Hughes (69) were tied for third on 1-over par.
Overnight co-leader Rory McIlroy shot a 73 and was part of a six-player logjam at T6 on 2-over par. Jon Rahm (66) and Bubba Watson (70) were some of the other names in that group.
Top-5 Leaders
Pos-Player-To Par (Rd 3)
1. Dustin Johnson -1 (-1)
1. Hideki Matsuyama -1 (-1)
3. Joaquin Niemann +1 (-2)
3. Adam Scott +1 (E)
3. Mackenzie Hughes +1 (-1)
