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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- A full 54 holes have been played at the 2017 Players Championship, and I'm less certain of who's going to win now than I was at the beginning of the tournament.

J.B. Holmes and Kyle Stanley lead at 9 under with King Louis Oosthuizen one back after a 73 in Round 3. Si Woo Kim shot the best round of anybody in the afternoon groups on Saturday with a 68, and he's alone in fourth, two back of the lead.

Emiliano Grillo and Ian Poulter combined to shoot 6 under, and they're both three back. Then we get to a fascinating group of Sergio Garcia, Patrick Cantlay and Alex Noren at 5 under, four back of the lead.

That probably is the cutoff of golfers who can take home the PGA Tour's flagship event this season, but even among those nine golfers, there is no feel for who has a hand around the trophy.

Of the golfers in that top nine not named Sergio Garcia, they share just 10 total PGA Tour victories including just one major championship (Oosthuizen's 2010 Open Championship at St. Andrews).

For a while on Saturday, it felt as if the tournament was slipping back to Garcia, who shot second-best round of the day at 67 and has oodles of momentum heading into the finale on Sunday.

He's also won here before and is riding high on confidence from his triumph at Augusta National in April. Another 67 on Sunday could get it done, but the leaders on Saturday did just enough that it's likely there are too many players ahead of him to leapfrog.

Stanley and Oosthuizen came into the day as the co-leaders, and they fought leaky play early (the two combined for five bogeys in the first five holes) to close with two birdies in the final three holes including this filthy shot from Stanley on No. 17.

"It's pretty tight," Stanley said. "I mean, there are a lot of guys kind of stacked up together. I think that's just because it's been playing so difficult this week. So I don't know what the conditions will be like tomorrow. I'd assume they'd be some of the same."

But it is Holmes who is arguably the most experienced at the top. He has four PGA Tour wins including one at Quail Hollow, the site of this year's PGA Championship. He is the favorite in Vegas at 3-1, but it doesn't feel like he has a stranglehold on the tournament. 

"Don't get me wrong, I would love to win, and it would be awesome," Holmes said. "Such a cool tournament, and to be able to lift that trophy would be amazing, but I'm not going to dwell on everything. 

"If it happens, that's great, and I can think about all that stuff there, but right now, I've still got another round of golf and a lot of things can happen. Looking forward to getting out there tomorrow and playing. Playing well. It should be fun, be exciting to be in the last group, and get to play for the chance to win. That's what you're out here for, so it's going to be fun tomorrow."

Oosthuizen agreed with Holmes.

"That's just what we play for is trying to win in majors and world events and big events like The Players," Oosthuizen said. "So you know, that's where you test yourself because you're playing against the top in the world, and playing major championships. There's nothing like it, learning about yourself, what you go through if you're leading or if you're not playing great, and you get tested at a major championship because there's so much more at stake."

So we don't know who will win on Sunday. But a bunched leaderboard and a ton of parity at the top almost guarantees drama. Will Stanley or Kim grab a life-changer? Might Holmes remind everyone of how underrated he's been over the last decade on Tour? Will Oosthuizen finally get a complement to his 2010 Open? Or could Garcia back up his 67 with another one and continue the Year of the Sergio? 

We've seen him do this before. If it comes back at all, Garcia can (and probably will) close. And how dramatic would the tournament get if Garcia came to the 17th hole that has given so much and taken so much from him in the past?

Either way, everyone involved is looking forward to the final 18.

"You know, and just enjoy the moment, the opportunity," Stanley said. "Mother's Day, final group of The Players, it doesn't get much better than that. Just be grateful for the opportunity I have ahead of us and enjoy it."

"Everybody is going to get some bad breaks," said Holmes. "Everybody is going to get some bad lies. Everybody is going to get a bad bounce. You've just got to deal with it and expect it coming into this, and when it happens, don't let it ruin your day."

A salty course that is baking out with a cauldron of an ending awaits what has been a bit of a wacky week so far between the ropes. We've seen immense drama here in the recent past, and we're going to get it again on Sunday.