Nico Echavarria regains two-shot lead with closing eagle, Justin Thomas keeps pace and more from 2024 Zozo Championship

When they stood connected nan last tee container connected Saturday, Nico Echavarria and Justin Thomas were knotted up astatine 15 under. However, erstwhile nan last information of nan 2024 Zozo Championship gets underway connected Sunday — Saturday nighttime successful nan United States acknowledgment to nan important clip quality — Echavarria will person a two-shot advantage.

The 30-year-old Columbian recovered nan fairway connected nan par-5 person and stuck his 241-yard 2nd changeable to 2 feet for a tap-in eagle. Thomas, connected nan different hand, missed a four-foot birdie putt that would person pulled him wrong a changeable pinch 18 holes to play.

Although Echavarria has conscionable 1 PGA Tour triumph compared to Thomas’ 15, his came much precocious than nan two-time awesome champion’s latest. The University of Arkansas merchandise won nan Puerto Rico Open past twelvemonth while nan world No. 32 hasn’t hoisted hardware since nan ’22 PGA Championship.

“At nan extremity of nan time it has been a while, but I’ve still won a beautiful bully magnitude of play tournaments,” Thomas said aft signing his card. “I cognize really to win. It’s conscionable a matter of executing and doing it and that’s really been nan biggest difference.”

The victor successful Japan will gain $1.53 cardinal of nan $8.5 cardinal purse, 500 FedEx Cup points and a two-year exemption connected Tour.

Here’s what you request to cognize from Day 3 astatine nan Zozo Championship.

Zozo: Photos | Leaderboard

Third-round takeaways from nan Zozo Championship

Can Echavarria clasp disconnected 1 of nan champion successful nan game?

Echavarria’s lone Tour triumph came astatine nan Puerto Rico Open, an other section arena to nan Arnold Palmer Invitational. So holding disconnected Thomas, 1 of nan biggest names successful nan sport, will beryllium a situation he has yet to face. Only clip will show really he responds.

“Yeah, absolutely,” he replied erstwhile asked if his acquisition successful Puerto Rico will thief connected Sunday. “Obviously this is simply a amended section than nan 1 successful Puerto Rico, there’s amended players retired here, but a triumph is simply a win. I’m going to trust connected that and support doing what I’m doing, trying to person nosy and spot wherever we go.”

As for his information connected Saturday, Echavarria was 1 complete done 4 but quickly turned it astir pinch 4 birdies complete nan past 5 holes of his beforehand 9 to make nan move pinch a 3-under 31. On nan measurement home, he made a bogey and a birdie earlier his closing eagle to decorativeness retired his 5-under effort.

The BIG bird! 🦅
@Nicolas_Ech eagles nan past to return a two-shot lead heading into nan last information @ZOZOCHAMP. pic.twitter.com/vF9HnTHNJX

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 26, 2024

Over nan last 18 holes, Echavarria is looking to support it simple.

“Just enactment successful nan moment. It’s a cliche, but it’s really important. You don’t want to spell up pinch yourself, particularly there’s a batch of difficult holes retired here. You conscionable person to deed changeable by changeable and effort to beryllium successful nan fairway, effort to deed nan greenish and spot if nan putt goes in.”

Thomas hopes to break drought

It’s not often we spot 1 of nan champion players successful nan crippled spell years without winning, but Thomas has struggled for astir of nan past 2 seasons. In fact, he’s won conscionable doubly since a three-win 2019-20 season: ’21 Players and ’22 PGA.

But he’ll person a chance to get backmost successful nan winner’s circle connected Sunday acknowledgment to a third-round bogey-free 5-under 65.

Unlike Echavarria, Thomas sewage disconnected to a basking commencement pinch birdies connected Nos. 1 and 2. After 7 consecutive pars to adjacent his opening 9 holes, Thomas grabbed 3 much birdies connected Nos. 10, 11 and 14.

His information mightiness person ended successful disappointing fashion, but he’s still good wrong striking region pinch 18 holes to play.

“I would person evidently loved a mates much location coming in, but I played really, really solid, played really well,” he said. “You know, I conscionable benignant of consciousness for illustration I did what I needed to do and sewage it astir nan people well. It’s bully to station a bully people pinch it.”

What’s his cardinal to victory?

“Honestly, though I’m behind, it’s still patience. Anything tin hap retired here. You person a batch of birdie holes that you tin make bogey successful a heartbeat if you get retired of position aliases get successful nan incorrect spot astir nan greens. I cognize that pinch greens this soft, immoderate spread is birdiable. I deliberation conscionable because if I hap to beryllium moreover done five, six, 7 holes, that doesn’t mean I’m retired of it, I conscionable person to support my caput down and really conscionable dainty each spread for what it is and really effort to make arsenic galore birdies arsenic I can.”

Fowler ends his information pinch a bang

Fowler returned to nan Tour earlier this period aft an extended clip distant pursuing nan commencement of his 2nd child, but his crippled hasn’t shown galore signs of rust.

In his first commencement since nan Open, Fowler tied for 16th astatine nan Sanderson Farms Championship. Two weeks later, nan fan-favorite vanished T-23 astatine nan Shriners Children’s Open. And done 54 holes of nan Zozo, Fowler is 11 nether and successful a necktie for fourth.

On Saturday, Fowler made 4 birdies and 2 bogeys earlier closing his information successful melodramatic manner pinch a 44-foot birdie putt aft hitting his attack changeable from nan incorrect fairway.

Finishing successful style 🤩@RickieFowler drains it from 43 feet to move to T4 @ZOZOCHAMP. pic.twitter.com/zgUJepWJx4

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) October 26, 2024

“I’m excited because I consciousness for illustration I really haven’t had my champion betwixt Sanderson, Vegas and present nan first 3 days,” he said. “I cognize I person a batch much successful nan vessel and what I tin do. Hopefully conscionable cleanable a fewer things up. There’s been a batch of bully signs, but complete nan past fewer events I conscionable haven’t really put it each together. So I’m looking guardant to getting retired location and hopefully we tin get a bully 1 going.”

Fowler, who will commencement nan last information six backmost of Echavarria, past won complete a twelvemonth agone astatine nan Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Top 10 and likelihood to win

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