Dean Burmester three-putted the 18th for par on Sunday, but his three-under-par 68 was enough to lit him to 11-under-par through 54 holes and put him in ninth place on his own in the 106th PGA Championship.
With Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky still playing easy, Burmester spent the day flirting with the very uppermost reaches of the leaderboard as he went through the first 10 holes in three-under. That took him to within one shot of the lead at that point, but two bogeys on the 12th and the 14th set him back. He matched those with birdies on 13 and 17.
He heads into the final round of a major championship – to which he gained entry by invitation in acknowledgement of his form and abilities despite a lack of official world ranking recognition – just four off the lead which was held by Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa of the United States.
One off the lead was their countryman Sahith Theegala, who overcame two early bogeys to post a four-under 67 to move to 14-under.
Behind them came the round of the day – if not of the championship – as Shane Lowry flirted with history. Just a narrowly missed birdie putt on 18 stood between him and the first-ever 61 in a major. He now has the opportunity to win his second major after shooting the fifth 62 in men’s major history, and the second this week. After starting Saturday in 29th place, eight shots off the lead, Lowry is now just two back of leaders.
For Burmester, the view from ninth in the field is an imposing one: Four of the players ahead of him – Morikawa, Lowry, Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Rose – are major champions. Schauffele and Viktor Hovland should be before too long, and Theegala and Robert MacIntyre would not be out of place as major champions.
Behind him, there are no fewer than 16 major champions, but with a previous best in a major of 11th in the 2022 Open championship, he has a powerful incentive to push hard in the final round.
The only other South African to make the cut was Erik van Rooyen, and he carded a level-par 71 in the third round to head into Sunday on two-under for the championship in a share of 60th.
