American Express final round has lurking stars with dramatic potential

The PGA Tour arrived at the American Express Stadium in La Quinta, Calif., without its two expected early-season headliners.

World number one Scotty Scheffler was the last to withdraw as he was still recovering from a stab wound to his hand on Christmas Day. Meanwhile, world No. 2 Xander Schauffele withdrew from the tournament earlier this week citing “health reasons” along with his manager.

The absences are heartbreaking, but the stars of the American Express field are (as usual) in low form and the leaderboard is packed ahead of Sunday.

Austrian Sepp Straka shot 64, 65 and 8-under 64 on Saturday at La Quinta Country Club to lead the 54 holes at 23 under. Straka was well-positioned heading into Sunday’s event to notch his third career PGA Tour victory and first since the 2023 John Deere Classic.

But he must fend off a crowded group that includes stars, several players looking for breakout moments and a veteran looking to break a long drought.

With Straka looking to get the deal done on Sunday, here are five things to watch.

Stars lurk

American Express had very few votes on Sunday.

In 2023, Schauffele shot 10-under in the final round and nearly knocked out champion Jon Rahm before the end of the tournament. Last year, Yu shot 9 under on Sunday, two strokes shy of winner Nick Dunlap.

While Straka will hold a four-shot lead on Sunday, Jason Day (19-under), Patrick Cantlay (18-under) and Justin Thomas (18-under 17) are capable of stealing the lead from Straka on Sunday.

Thomas continued that form Saturday, missing a 3-foot-8-inch putt for birdie on the 16th hole. Thomas saved a bogey, but his mistake in the final round may have cost him a chance to actually win his first event since the 2022 PGA Championship.

As Thomas stumbled home, his partner Day birdied the 16 and 18 to finish tied for second at 19 under. After a strong performance on the greens in the first round, Day’s iron shot and putting helped him on Saturday. Day gained 1.56 strokes entering the third round and 1.21 strokes on the green, according to DataGolf.

In the third round, the Australian had a strike rate of 4.05. Day hasn’t won since the 2023 AT&T Byron Nelson contest.

Cantlay, meanwhile, birdied his final three holes to get indoors at 18 under. He has not won the title since the 2022 BMW Championship.

Hoffman’s time?

Since winning the Valero Texas Open in 2016, Charlie Hoffman has been looking for a way back to the winner’s circle.

The 48-year-old Hoffman came close to winning last year when he lost to Nick Taylor in a playoff at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. But Hoffman’s only two other top-10 finishes last year came at the Corales Punta Cana Championship and the Barracuda Championship.

Hoffman has finished in the top 70 in the FedEx Cup just once in the past five years (2020-21).

Ranked 134 in the world, he hopes he can rekindle some of that old magic on Sunday.

“I came into this tournament to compete for a championship, and obviously I had a chance last year at the WM Phoenix Open,” Hoffman told Golf Channel after the third round. “I like to get my juices flowing. That’s what I practice for. That’s why I play this game. I don’t play this game to advance and get into the top 100. Only if you’re in position tomorrow can you Do that and I’ll hopefully thrive. I’ve failed before and I’ve succeeded and hopefully I’ve learned from all those experiences and hopefully I’ll have a chance on the last few holes.

Even if Huffman doesn’t win on Sunday, a good round should help Huffman earn a spot in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the first signature event of the season, via the Aon Swing Five. tournament. As of Saturday, Huffman has jumped to third place in the Aon Swing Five standings, putting him in good position to earn a ticket to Pebble Beach with one game remaining in the Swing after this week .

Will first-time winners strike?

While they may not be the headliners, the final round of the American Express will have no shortage of pros gunning for their first career PGA Tour victory.

Justin Lower, 35, who shot a third-round 68 to finish at 19 under, would be the closest to Straka on the day.

Lore’s putter rolled Saturday, hitting 3.82 strokes on the green to stay within striking distance of Stucka.

The Akron, Ohio, native has been knocking on the door lately. Last season, Raul had five top-10 finishes, including runner-up at the World Technical Championships and third at the Vidanta Mexico Open.

“I’m getting more and more comfortable,” Lore said after the second round. “I would say, though, there’s definitely some discomfort. It’s a little different playing at the top and stuff like that, but that’s where we all want to be, that’s what we’re all striving for, so yeah, it’s just really Take it one step at a time, as cliche as it is, but that’s the best way.

Another pro looking for his first win is Max Greyserman, who shot a 7-under 65 on Saturday to give himself a chance to win his first title on Sunday. Last year, the 29-year-old Graeseman finished 48th in the FedExCup standings with three runner-up finishes and six top-10s in his first full season on Tour.

Glaserman’s game Saturday was fueled by an eagle with 156 yards.

The third member of the potential first-time winners club is Mark Hubbard…

a feel good story

Hubbard, 35, started two rounds at 15 under, putting him firmly in contention. But Hubbard’s strong performance means more to him than his place on this week’s leaderboard.

Many of Hubbard’s family and friends have been affected by the wildfires that have ravaged Los Angeles since last week. Mark’s brother Nathan and several others lost their homes. Twenty family members and friends were watching Hubbard this week after they were forced to evacuate and decided to head south to watch Hubbard for respite.

Mark lives in Texas, but that doesn’t lessen the impact of this tragedy on him. and

“We’ve had a rough ride,” Mark Hubbard told PGATour.com’s Paul Hodovanich.

“Being able to be away from the hustle and bustle and not have to think about anything else is a great escape. It definitely makes it easier to realize that this is just a stupid game and none of it matters at all.

Hubbard’s career-best finish was second place at the 2019 Houston Open.

A slump on Sunday and some help from those ahead of him will make the final round for Hubbard and the Tour one to remember.