CROMWELL, Connecticut — Keegan Bradley shot a 6-under 64 on Saturday to break the 54-under championship scoring record at 21-under for the Tournament Travelers, while Ricky Fowler took second of the week at TPC River Highlands.
The previous three-round mark was 18-under, put by Brendan Todd on a blank run during the height of the pandemic in 2020. The four-round tournament record is 22-under, set by Kenny Perry at 200.
Bradley missed a 20-foot putt on 18 that would have tied the 54-hole PGA Tour mark of 188 set by Steve Stricker at the 2010 John Deere Classic and matched by Justin Thomas at the 2017 Sony Open. Bradley opened with rounds of 62 and 63.
“I wanted to win this tournament forever,” said Bradley, a Vermont native who also lived in Massachusetts and was playing in front of a large group of family and friends. “So, the feeling of wanting to push and win is something I need to fight against and just let myself go out and play.”
Chez Reavie was hitting again after 63. He drove off a lot of the nine defenders, but made a bogey on the par-3 16th, while Bradley hit his tee to 6 feet and converted his birdie hit into a three-run swing. Bradley finished second to Revie in the 2019 Travelers competition.
“I had a big lead and then Keegan made a bunch of birdies throughout the beginning and middle of the round to make it really close,” Revie said. “Tomorrow it will be the opposite. It will be a penalty shootout.”
Fowler just missed the thirteenth sub-60 in PGA Tour history. After failing to turn out of the green on the final hole, he ended up tied for fourth in the 15-under event as Jim Furyk scored a record-breaking 58th round in 2016.
“I hit a good chip, I just hit it a little bit softer,” said Fowler. “Clicking 60 is never bad. It’s better than 61.”
Behind Patrick Cantlay was Fowler, who had a bogey-free 61 that included five birdies in his last seven holes. Cantlay was the first player to shoot a 60 on this course, doing so as a 19-year-old amateur in 2011.
“Scoring on that golf course is usually on the back nine in that middle stretch,” he said. “She’s played the front nine 4 under. If you can get the front nine you can shoot a real low, so tomorrow with the low scores I imagine she’ll take another low one.”
Denny McCarthy opened with a score of 60 on Thursday and shared the second round lead with Bradley on a tournament record 125.
McCarthy bounced back early on Saturday, making three bogeys on the front nine for 37. He shot 70, leaving him tied with Fowler and Adam Scott (65).
Nearly half an inch of rain delayed the start of the round until 11 a.m., with players out in threes on both the front and back ninths. But she also kept the greens soft and the scoring low.
Fowler, who shot the first 62 in US Open history last week, had seven birdies in his first 11 holes on Saturday.
He was 7 on the 6th hole with a par five when he hit a par putt from 60 feet that bounced on the green and rolled straight into the hole for an eagle.
Thomas also put himself in contention on Saturday with a score of 62, leaving him in the pool at 14.
“I felt so close for a while, I literally had nothing to show for it,” said Thomas. “And you never know. I’m one round away tomorrow from kind of completely changing my focus and expectations for the year and the rest of the year.”
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler shot 63 and was also in that group.
US Open champion Windham Clark had 67 points for 8-under.