Neal Shipley and Ben Kohles will play Sunday’s final round of the Biltmore Championship in Asheville, North Carolina, with major career stakes on the line. Shipley, who opened the week 183rd in the FedEx Cup standings after a difficult rookie season, surged into a one-shot lead at 21 under par after three rounds, highlighted by a Friday 62. Victory would move him to 74th in the standings, secure his PGA Tour card for 2027 and earn a two-year exemption, along with a place in the Tour’s 2028 Championship Series.
Kohles is one shot behind after rounds of 65, 63 and 65. The 36-year-old is chasing his first PGA Tour victory after twice losing late leads, including at the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson and this year’s John Deere Classic. Kohles entered the week 96th in the FedEx Cup and 17th on the Korn Ferry Tour, where the top 20 earn PGA Tour cards. Eric Cole and Ricky Castillo are tied for third at 17 under, leaving the leading pair with little room for error on a soft, low-scoring course. “Keep the pedal down,” Kohles said, while Shipley said he planned to keep “chasing birdies” and make the final round as low as possible.
At the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, Rory McIlroy produced the round’s defining finish to move within two shots of co-leaders Filippo Celli and Manuel Elvira. McIlroy was one over par through 11 holes before recovering with a birdie at the 12th, another birdie at the par-5 17th and a spectacular eagle at the 18th after striking a 230-yard four-iron to a few feet. The finish left him 11 under par through 54 holes, while J.J. Spaun climbed to 12 under after a five-birdie, one-bogey third round. Celli and Elvira lead at 13 under, with the final leaderboard tightly packed.
McIlroy is also pursuing the Race to Dubai title, trailing Patrick Reed by nearly 1,000 points after Reed withdrew Friday because of an injury. The BMW PGA Championship offers 9,000 points, and McIlroy would overtake Reed with a solo second-place finish. “I have a big opportunity tomorrow on both fronts,” McIlroy said after his round, adding that he would love to win at Wentworth again after a 12-year wait. Spaun, meanwhile, is using the tournament as a response to being left off the U.S. Presidents Cup team after finishing 10th in the points standings; he said he was “carrying a bit of a chip” on his shoulder and would “try to win.”