Greensboro (US), Aug 3 (PTI) Defending champion Aaron Rai shot 1-under 69 to stay in the top-three while Cameron Young added a 5-under 65 to earlier rounds of 63-62 to take a five-shot lead at the Wyndham Championship here.
Indo-British Rai, whose rounds have been 63-66-69, is 12-under and lying tied third alongside Chris Kirk (67) and Mac Meissner (70). Colombian Nico Echavarria is sole second after a round of 64 and he is 15-under and five behind Young.
On a storm-delayed second round in the morning, Rai had five birdies, three of them in a row from the 13th to the 15th and he also dropped four bogeys.
Sahith Theegala had earlier missed the cut while the other Indian American Akshay Bhatia withdrew with five holes to go. When play was suspended, Bhatia had no chance of making the cut.
Following the Wyndham Championship, the top 70 players in the FedExCup standings will qualify for next week’s FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first of three events in the FedExCup Playoffs.
Rai and Bhatia are assured of a start at the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Young, who is chasing a maiden PGA Tour title, had four straight birdies on the front nine and stretched his lead to eight shots at one stage Saturday before a series of pars saw him finish 5-under 65.
Young capped off a bogey-free 65 in the storm-delayed second round in the morning. Then he stretched his lead with his four straight birdies, including a 30-footer on No. 4 and a two-putt birdie from 20 feet on the par-5 fifth.
Young is widely considered as the best player to have never won on a main TOUR. He was runner-up seven times since his rookie season in 2021. That includes a World Golf Championship and more notably the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews.
Young, who is 20-under 190, is also chasing a place on the Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black. He was No. 9 in the Ryder Cup standings in 2023 and left off the team.
Kirk is at No. 73 in the FedExCup standings.
The Wyndham Championship is the final event in the regular season and determines the top 70 who advance to the lucrative PGA TOUR postseason that starts next week in Memphis, Tennessee. PTI Corr PDS PDS PDS
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