Louis Oosthuizen will enter the final round of The Players Championship one shot off the lead after a 73 on Saturday.
The former Open champion will be in the penultimate group on Sunday after surrendering the halfway lead, which he held with Kyle Stanley.
Stanley remains a co-leader with big-hitting JB Holmes arguably the man to beat heading into the final 18 holes. The afternoon field struggled in blustery conditions with Si Woo Kim the only player to go low. Kim’s 68 sees him tied with Oosthuizen on -8 for the event.
The signs were there from the opening hole that it was going to be a tough day at Sawgrass for Oosthuizen after he bogeyed the first. Another drop followed on 5 before he closed his outward nine with a birdie on the par 5 ninth.
He gave that shot straight back on 10, but made another birdie on 11 to remain at +1 for the day. Another drop at 13 meant his birdie on 16 was more damage limitation than making a move on the field.
Oosthuizen almost gave another shot back on 18 after flying the green with his second. Preferring to putt on to the green, his effort almost went long as he left himself a lengthy putt to save par. Fortunately he did, to keep himself firmly in the race to add the unofficial fifth major to his resume.
Reigning Masters champion Sergio Garcia is four shots behind Holmes and Stanley after a Saturday 67 saw him move nicely up the leaderboard.
