PGA Championship Leaderboard 2012: Biggest Winners & Losers Before Final Round

Inclement weather and harsh course conditions prompted a delay of play at the PGA Championship on Saturday. The winds and rain at Kiawah were a blessing in disguise for some of the game's greatest players.

After a very challenging and trying first two days on the Island Course, the third round didn’t get any easier for the PGA Tour professionals.

Several key players in the chase dropped significantly after struggling throughout the rain delayed round.

Let’s take a look at who has improved their chances and put themselves into contention during the final round of the hunt for the Wanamaker.

At the same time, who has fallen back and taken a blow to their odds of winning at Kiawah?

Winner: Rory McIlroy

McIlroy struggled during his second round with a 75 but bounced back for his second successful day of the tournament. He shot a 67 in the third round, matching his opening round performance from Thursday.

He’s currently boasting a three-stroke lead heading into the final round. This is his tournament to lose.

Losers: Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh

Woods was struggling and completely out-of-sync before weather delayed play on Saturday. He lost four bogeys and knocked in zero birdies on the front nine. Those struggles seemed to disappear on the second day of Round 3; he punched in three birdies and only lost one bogey.

Singh, on the other hand, was in contention leading into Sunday’s misfortunes. He lost four bogeys and a single double-bogey while falling to a plus-two round.

He’s currently tied with Woods at 2-under par instead of in close contention with McIlroy where he started the day.

Winners: Bo Van Pelt and Steve Stricker

Van Pelt and Stricker were not on the radar until their excellent 5-under par third round performances. The two surged from nowhere after posting disappointing opening and second rounds. Now, as the pack continues to take shape, they have put themselves within striking distance of McIlroy.

Loser: Ian Poulter

Poulter is another guy who was struggling mightily before the rain prematurely ended play on Saturday. He had three bogeys and fell to a plus-two mark for the day. He didn’t do very much to help his case on the back nine but he also didn’t fall any further out of contention as he shot a respectable par.

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