Rory McIlroy was left to lament his sloppy par-five play and lack of momentum as he was left playing for pride in the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.

The Co Down man arrived at the Ocean Course where he won by eight strokes in 2012 as the hot favourite to end his seven-year Major drought.

But his driving let him down and after opening with a 75 and then bogeying his last three holes on Friday to shoot 72 and trail halfway leaders Phil Mickelson and Louis Oosthuizen by eight strokes, he added a two-over 74 yesterday to slip to 51st on five-over-par.

At three-over-par for the 12 par-fives — he’s made three birdies, three pars and six bogeys— his performance on the three-shotters ranks as his joint-worst performance in any single PGA Tour event and it’s clearly a sign that the work he’s doing with Pete Cowen will take time to bed in.

“It's being a little tidier around the greens, it's hitting a few more fairways, it's taking some of your chances when you do hit good iron shots, instead of making the pars, you make the birdies,” he said of the difference between making up the numbers and contending.

“I'm pretty comfortable with where my iron game is. I've put myself out of position a little bit with a couple of the tee shots on the par-5s, and that's cost me. 

“Still a little bit of work to do, not quite feeling like it's all there, and that's what it course does. It exposes where you're not at your best, and certainly this week that's been off the tee.”

There was little improvement in that aspect of his game yesterday as he played the par-fives in level par, mixing two pars with a bogey six at the 11th and a lone birdie at the 16th.

Needing a fast start, he went backwards instead, hitting a fairway wood right into water at the 396-yard first before failing to birdie the par-five second.

While he knocked in a 26 footer for birdie at the ninth, he missed a string of chances — eight feet at the second, 15 feet at the third, seven feet at the sixth and six feet at the par-five eighth — to turn in level par.

He needed a hot back nine to get back to the fringes of contention but pushed his tee shot into the penalty area at the 10th for the second time in three days and made bogey, then took six at the par-five 11th after tangling with the waste area on the left.

He’d drop another shot at the 15th before finally making a birdie four at the 16th but he’s clearly struggled to score, ranking 73rd for putting and 74th for scrambling.

“Yeah, I just haven't played the par-5s well,” he said. “I need to do some other things better, as well, but that certainly hasn't happened.”

As for the cause of his struggles, he said: “Just getting some momentum. I just feel like I haven't had any momentum this week. 

“When you start the way I did today with a bogey and then you don't make a birdie on the second hole, you're just always trying to play catch-up, and it's hard to on this golf course because there's very few opportunities where you can be really aggressive.”

Pádraig Harrington and Shane Lowry both shot one-over 73s to finish on one-over-par and now need to shoot the lights out on Sunday to contend.

“I'm frustrated, I'm disappointed because I feel like I had a round in me today, especially where I drove the ball to,” Lowry said. “But I think if I can get it back into red figures for the tournament, I think it would be a very good tournament.”

As for Harrington, he still believes Mickelson can become golf’s oldest Major champion.

“What he's got himself now is in a position that he could win this tournament in many different ways,” Harrington said. “He could continue to play well and run away with it or he could play some of Phil's special golf and still win the tournament.”

Mickelson was five clear after playing his first 10 holes in five-under before he bogeyed the 12th and double-bogeyed the 13th after a visit to water to fall back to seven-under for the tournament.

He eventually carded a two-under 70 to lead by a shot from two-time PGA Championship winner Koepka who caught Mickelson on seven-under thanks a magnificent two-putt birdie at the 16th but three-putted from just over the back of the 18th for bogey for a 70.

Mickelson missed the 18th green left but played one of his trademark cut up wedges to five feet and made the par putt to take a one-stroke lead into the final round on seven-under.

Louis Oosthuizen was third, two behind on five-under after struggling to a 72 with veteran Kevin Streelman just three behind after a 70.

South Africa’s Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Branden Grant shot 72s to share fifth, four shots off the pace on three-under with Bryson DeChambeau (71), Joaquin Niemann (71) and Gary Woodland (72) tied seventh on two-under.

Paul Casey, Sungjae Im, Corey Conners were tied 10th on one-under with Jordan Spieth in a 10-man group in level par after a fine 68.

Third-Round Leaderboard

Phil Mickelson 70-69-70—209 (-7)

Brooks Koepka 69-71-70—210 (-6)

Louis Oosthuizen  71-68-72—211 (-5)

Kevin Streelman  70-72-70—212 (-4)

Christian Bezuidenhout 71-70-72—213 (-3)

Branden Grace  70-71-72—213 (-3)

Things to Know

• Five-time major champion and 2005 PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson holds a one-stroke lead and is looking to become the first player to win a men’s major championship after turning 50 years old

• Mickelson is the fourth player to hold the 54-hole lead/co-lead in a major at age 50 or older during the modern era (1934-present)

• Mickelson is 3-for-5 with the 54-hole lead/co-lead in major championships (21-for-36 in 72-hole PGA TOUR events)

• 2018 and 2019 PGA Championship winner Brooks Koepka is one stroke back of Mickelson; last player to win the same major at least three times in a four-year stretch: Tom Watson, The Open Championship (1980, 1982, 1983)

• Sunday’s final pairing includes two players that have combined for nine major championship titles (Mickelson/5, Koepka/4) 

Phil Mickelson (Leader/-7)

Five major championship titles, including one PGA Championship victory (2004 Masters Tournament, 2005 PGA Championship, 2006 Masters Tournament, 2010 Masters Tournament, 2013 Open Championship)

Fourth player to hold the 54-hole lead/co-lead in a major championship at age 50 or older in the modern era (1934-present)

Age Player Tournament Finish

50 Phil Mickelson 2021 PGA Championship TBD

59 Tom Watson 2009 The Open Championship 2nd

53 Greg Norman 2008 The Open Championship T3

53 Julius Boros 1973 U.S. Open T7 (Boros was the only one to sleep on a 54-hold lead.

• No player has won a major after turning 50 years old

• Oldest major winner: 48 years, 4 months, 18 days/Julius Boros/1968 PGA Championship)

• Seven players have won on the PGA TOUR after turning 50 years old (Mickelson’s age Sunday: 50 years, 11 months, 7 days)

Age Player Tournament

52 years, 10 months, 8 days Sam Snead 1965 Wyndham Championship

51 years, 7 months, 10 days Art Wall 1975 Greater Milwaukee Open

51 years, 4 months, 10 days Davis Love III 2015 Wyndham Championship

51 years, 3 months, 7 days Jim Barnes 1937 Long Island Open

51 years, 1 month, 5 days John Barnum 1962 Cajun Classic Open Invitational

50 years, 8 months, 11 days Fred Funk 2007 Mayakoba Golf Classic presented by UNIFIN

50 years, 1 month, 18 days Craig Stadler 2003 B.C. Open

13 men have won six major championships (Mickelson: 5)

Wins Player

18 Jack Nicklaus

15 Tiger Woods

11 Walter Hagen

9 Ben Hogan, Gary Player

8 Tom Watson

7 Bobby Jones, Arnold Palmer, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Harry Vardon

6 Nick Faldo, Lee Trevino

Eight players have won 45 times on the PGA TOUR (Mickelson: 44)

Wins Player

82 Sam Snead, Tiger Woods

73 Jack Nicklaus

64 Ben Hogan

62 Arnold Palmer

52 Byron Nelson

51 Billy Casper

45 Walter Hagen

• Last major championship victory: 2013 The Open Championship

• Last top-10 in a major: 2016 The Open Championship (T2)

• Last PGA TOUR victory: 2019 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

• Last top-10 on PGA TOUR: 2020 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational (T2)

• 3-for-5 with the 54-hole lead/co-lead in major championships

 

Tournament Lead/co-lead Finish 2021 PGA Championship Solo TBD

2013 U.S. Open Solo T2

2006 U.S. Open Tied T2

2006 Masters Tournament Solo Won

2005 PGA Championship Tied Won

2004 Masters Tournament Tied Won

• 21-for-36 with the 54-hole lead/co-lead in 72-hole events on the PGA TOUR

• Last 54-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR: 2019 The American Express (T2)

• Last win when holding the 54-hole lead/co-lead on TOUR: 2013 Waste Management Phoenix Open

• No player has ever gone 30 years between his first and last PGA TOUR victory (Mickelson: 30 years, 4 months, 10 days since earning his first PGA TOUR title at the 1991 Northern Telecom Open as an amateur)

• Longest time between first and last win on the PGA TOUR: 28 years, 11 months, 20 days (Raymond Floyd)
  

Most consecutive seasons with a top-10 on the PGA TOUR (Mickelson: no top-10s on TOUR this season)

Seasons Player Start-end of streak

34 Sam Snead 1934-1969

32 Raymond Floyd 1963-1994

30 Phil Mickelson 1991-thru 2020

36 consecutive major championships have been won by players in the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking; at No. 115, Mickelson would have the lowest ranking of any major champion since Shaun Micheel won the 2003 PGA Championship at No. 169 (note: Stewart Cink won the RBC Heritage five weeks ago after entering the week No. 115 in the OWGR)

Brooks Koepka (2nd/-6)

Four major championship titles, including two PGA Championship victories (2017 U.S. Open, 2018 U.S. Open, 2018 PGA Championship, 2019 PGA Championship)

• Has ranked T4 or better after 13 of his last 14 rounds in the PGA Championship

• 19 men have won at least five major championships (Koepka: 4)

Five players have won the PGA Championship at least three times (Koepka: 2)

Wins Player

5 Walter Hagen, Jack Nicklaus

4 Tiger Woods

3 Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead

Eight players since 1900 have won the same major championship at least three times in a four-year stretch (Koepka: won 2018 and 2019 PGA Championship)

Player Tournament Years

Tom Watson The Open Championship 1980, 1982, 1983

Jack Nicklaus Masters Tournament 1963, 1965, 1966

Peter Thomson The Open Championship 1954, 1955, 1956, 1958

Ben Hogan U.S. Open 1950, 1952, 1953

Bobby Locke The Open Championship 1949, 1950, 1952

Walter Hagen PGA Championship 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927

James Braid The Open Championship 1905, 1906, 1908

Willie Anderson U.S. Open 1903, 1904, 1905

• Earned eighth PGA TOUR title earlier this season at the Waste Management Phoenix Open; four total top-10s in 11 starts on the season

• Entered the week with missed cuts in each of his last two starts on TOUR (Masters Tournament, AT&T Byron Nelson), his only starts since March 1 (right knee injury)

Additional Player Notes

• Louis Oosthuizen (3rd) is making his 49th major start; has one win (2010 Open Championship), four runner-ups (one in each major) and eight top-10s in the previous 48

Kevin Streelman (4th) will be 42 years, 6 months, 19 days old Sunday; three players have earned their first major championship title at that age or older since 1958

Age Player Tournament

45 years, 3 months, 6 days Jerry Barber, 1961 PGA Championship

44 years, 3 months, 1 day Roberto De Vicenzo, 1967 The Open Championship

42 years, 11 months, 3 days Darren Clarke 2011 The Open Championship

• Christiaan Bezuidenhout (T5) has earned 202 non-member FedExCup points in eight prior starts this season; can become eligible for Special Temporary Membership on the PGA TOUR if he earns 86 FedExCup points at the PGA Championship (solo-9th or better)