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Momentum is a hell of a thing, and few have been able to harness it more effectively than Billy Horschel over the last decade. Capturing his first top-15 finish in a stroke-play event of the year last week at the 3M Open, Horschel has ridden this mini wave of momentum into a share of the 54-hole lead at the 2023 Wyndham Championship at 18 under.
Carding rounds of 62 and 63 the last two days at Sedgefield Country Club, Horschel finds his name atop the leaderboard alongside Lucas Glover's heading into Sunday's deciding final round. Both players entered the week outside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings, and both are currently projected to jump inside the top 70 with either a victory or runner-up result.
This Horschel stretch has come out of nowhere. Just nine weeks removed from shooting 84 at the Memorial Tournament and confirming his game was nowhere near where it needed to be, Horschel looks to have found it in Greensboro, North Carolina. The comeback will have to be earned as not only will Glover present a challenge but so will Russell Henley who's one stroke back at 17 under and Byeong Hun An who's just two strokes worse.
The leaders
T1. Billy Horschel, Lucas Glover (-18)
No one was better than Glover on Saturday as he tied Michael Kim for the lowest round with an 8-under 62. Carding a total of nine birdies, including three in his final four holes, the 43-year-old made a massive leap up not only the leaderboard but the FedEx Cup standings. Glover may be content with either a win or runner-up result as both would move him inside the top 70, a but a victory has to be top of mind as it would put him exactly 50th and inside the BMW Championship cut-off point.
Other contenders
3. Russell Henley (-17)
4. Byeong Hun An (-15)
5. Stephen Jaegar (-13)
6. Michael Kim (-11)
T7. Eric Cole, J.T. Poston, Brendon Todd, Adam Svensson (-10)
An is a player who arrived at the Wyndham Championship very much flying under the radar despite finishing on the podium at the Scottish Open and a top 25 at The Open, and he could make a nice move towards the top 30 should he replicate the Scottish result. He has now carded three straight 65s with Saturday's being his 11th straight round in the 60s at the Wyndham Championship.
"I believe they're Koreans," An said of his notably rowdy fans at Sedgefield. "Do you see the Korean flag? Yeah, I guess they're Koreans. No, I didn't pay them, no. I swear to God, I didn't pay them. They just came out today."
Bubble boys
All eyes will be on Thomas as he sits just outside the top 70 with 18 holes to play. He has made up ground with a pair of solid rounds in the mid 60s, but he will need more if Sunday is not to be his final round of the season. The putter heated up in the third round, and now the iron play needs to carry its weight.
"It's hard to avoid the leaderboards, but I mean, the only way I feel I would change strategy would be in a situation where I needed to birdie the last two holes or I needed to birdie 18 or something," said Thomas. "The hope is to go play really well tomorrow and see how close to the lead we can get, and if I do that, then should be fine. It's very similar to Q-School. I didn't go into the final stage of Q-School trying to finish 45th, I went there trying to win a golf tournament. If I just came up short, then it was going to be plenty to qualify. It's a very different but somewhat similar situation here."
| Player | Projected Standing | Official Standing |
|---|---|---|
Cam Davis | 67 | 69 |
Vincent Norrman | 68 | 66 |
Matt NeSmith | 69 | 65 |
J.J. Spaun | 70 | 67 |
Justin Thomas | 72 | 79 |
2023 Wyndham Championship updated odds and picks
- Billy Horschel: 9/5
- Lucas Glover: 2-1
- Russell Henley: 21/10
- Byeong Hun An: 12-1
This tournament is down to four horses, and it is surprisingly Henley who garners the most trust. Despite having experienced a heartbreak here in 2021, Henley looks to be in a comfortable spot both physically and mentally. He was the clear class of the field the first two days, and despite not having his best stuff Saturday, kept himself in the mix with two late birdies. A member of the penultimate group alongside An, Henley will have a chance to apply some pressure on the two leaders behind him on the golf course.
