Mito Pereira made the most of moving day at the PGA Championship as he slid to the top of the leaderboard and took the 54-hole lead at Southern Hills Country Club. Pereira carded a third-round 69 for one of the few sub-70 rounds on what was a cool and blustery day in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Here are three things to know ahead of Sunday’s final round.
First-timers Chasing Maiden Major Title
The experience of chasing down a major on Sunday will be largely an unfamiliar one for those atop the leaderboard at Southern Hills Country Club. 16 players are tied for 10th or better heading into the final round, and 11 are chasing their first Major title. Of those inside the top 5, Mito Pereira, Will Zalatoris, Cameron Young, and Matt Fitzpatrick, have a chance to become the first since Danny Willett at the 2016 Masters to win not only their first event on the PGA Tour but also make it a major championship.
Major Champions Lurking on Championship Sunday
On moving day, players encountered the toughest conditions of the week as temperatures plunged into the 50s with wind gusts upwards of 25 mph. But the conditions were no match for Webb Simpson who carded, by far, the lowest round of the day with a 5-under par, 65 to soar more than 50 spots up the leaderboard and sit tied for 10th at 1-under par with 18 holes to play.
WATCH: The Sights and Sounds from a Chilly and Windy Moving Day
“It's really hard to go out and get a fast start. I mean, it's a tough start,” Simpson said on moving day. “I feel like if you're even through four holes, that's really good. I'll take that.”
Simpson won the 2012 U.S. Open and will be looking to chase down his second major title with another low round on Sunday. Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson (-2), Open champion Stewart Cink (-2), PGA Champion Justin Thomas (-2), and U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland (-1) are also lurking near the top of the leaderboard to begin the final round.
Tiger Woods Withdraws from PGA Championship
Tiger Woods will not play the final round of the PGA Championship. The four-time PGA Champion battled back to play the weekend with a 69 on Friday. Woods withdrew from the PGA Championship on Saturday evening following completion of the third round. It is the first time he has withdrawn from a major championship.
Woods was making just his second competitive start in a major championship in 2022.
A statement from PGA of America President Jim Richerson, PGA on Tiger Woods. pic.twitter.com/1psYCC0qHT
— PGA of America (@PGA) May 22, 2022