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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Kevin Kisner withstood a wavering back nine to keep the lead, shooting a 1-over-par 72 in the third round of the PGA Championship on Saturday at Quail Hollow Club. Kisner, the co-leader entering the day, holds a one-shot lead at 7-under 206.
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Chris Stroud, who bogeyed the final two holes, and second-round co-leader Hideki Matsuyama are at 6 under. Stroud shot 71 and Matsuyama checked in with 73.
Justin Thomas (69) and Louis Oosthuizen (71) sit at 5 under.
Jason Day (77), who was in the final group, is at par 213, a stunning drop from contention with a quadruple-bogey eight on the last hole. He's tied for 16th.
Kisner had chances to recover from some of his misfortune, though he played the last three holes in 3 over.
Across the first 11 holes, Kisner had all pars except for a birdie on No. 7. His bogey on No. 12 dropped him back into a tie with Matsuyama only momentarily because Matsuyama also bogeyed the hole.
Stroud pulled even shortly after, but Kisner had birdies on Nos. 14 and 15 for a two-shot lead. Kisner gave back the advantage with a double bogey on the par-4 16th, only to move back to the top line alone when Stroud posted bogey at No. 17.
Then Kisner closed with another bogey.
Matsuyama won last week's Bridgestone Invitational, but this would be a much bigger prize. He's trying to become the first golfer from Japan to win a major.
Stroud, who arrived early to finish the second round before returning several hours later, looked like he might go into the final day with the lead until he stumbled late.
Jordan Speith's bid to complete a career grand slam appears to be fizzling. He shot his best round of the tournament with a 71 on Saturday, but that left him at 3 over for the tournament and in a tie for 37th place.
"Obviously, any week you don't have a chance to win, you've fallen short of where you would like to be," Spieth said. "Disappointing would have been going home after two days. I think I saw some highlights today."
Spieth, who won the British Open last month, made a move by stringing three birdies on Nos. 14-16, only to be stuck with a double-bogey on the final hole.
"Kind of stinks because it sets me back there," he said. "(No.) 18 is just a ridiculously hard hole today."
J.B. Holmes shot 67 on Saturday, moving to 1 over for the tournament. He's among many golfers who've noted the changing conditions, particularly stemming from Friday's late-day rain.
"I'm sure everybody is happy it rained and softened up a little bit," Holmes said. "It would have been almost impossible if it hadn't got any rain."
NOTES: Graham DeLaet had two eagles on consecutive holes (Nos. 14-15). That helped him to a 68, moving to 2 under for the tournament and into a tie for seventh place. ... Bryson DeChambeau also had a notable back nine with two eagles, but he produced a score of 72. He's 3 over for the week (tied for 37th). ... Twenty-six players completed the suspended second round Saturday morning before 9 a.m. The cut line fell at 5 over, leaving Justin Rose and Kevin Na among those missing by one shot. ... Because of the delayed start to the third round, threesomes were used. ... There were no birdies on the first hole in the third round.
