PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. — Jon Rahm played his way into the final group on the PGA Tour for the third straight week. Only this time he has grabbed the lead, shooting a bogey-free 6-under 65 at Riviera Country Club on Saturday to assume a three-stroke lead over Max Homa heading into the final round of the Genesis Invitational.
“Really proud of today, heck of a round of golf,” said Rahm, who shot the only bogey-free round of the day. “Took advantage of a couple good lies in the rough and made every putt that I needed to keep the round going, highlighted by the one on 13.”
Rahm made four birdies on the front nine, including drilling his tee shot at the 245-yard par-3 fourth to 7 feet and rolling in the putt. He added a birdie at No. 11 and capped off the day with a 24-foot birdie putt at 18.
“I’ve seen that putt hit a million times and we all leave it just a couple, a couple rolls short, so I just wanted to get it there,” he said. “To be able to make one and extend the lead going into tomorrow, it’s a big bonus.”
Rahm, who entered the week No. 3 in the world, fell short of winning the titles at the Farmers Insurance Open and WM Phoenix Open, but this time, he’s the frontrunner.
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“Somebody’s going to come out tomorrow, and somebody’s going to shoot a round of 4, 5, 6, 7 under. It happens every single tournament we play in, right, so I have to be aware that somebody’s going to make a run and I’m going to have to shoot a 60s round for sure to give myself a chance to win as well,” he said. “Just aware that I need to keep doing what I’ve been doing until now.”
Rahm is seeking his 10th career PGA Tour title and would become the first player to win three times this season. It would also set a career high for wins in a season for Rahm. He noted it would be special to win on Sunday.
“The fact that Tiger is the host, the fact that he’s out here playing and the history of this golf course as a venue is two reasons why I would love to be able to win here,” he said. “It’s a very select group of champions, and you’ll join a list of champions that frankly Tiger and Jack have never joined, which probably never happens on any other golf course but this one, right?”