The Players Championship 2016: Saturday Scores, Results and Analysis

Jason Day did not have the kind of round he was hoping for on Saturday, but he just may have played the kind of golf that will earn him a wire-to-wire first-place finish at The Players Championship.

After dominating the course in the first two rounds when he got to 15-under and did not have one bogey, the No. 1 player in the world struggled badly in the early part of the round and slipped to four over par for the round through eight holes.

As he saw his lead dwindle to one stroke, it seemed like the tournament was getting away from him. But Day steadied himself, got it all the way back to one over par for the day and he will take a four-stroke lead into the final round.

The key hole may have been the par-four 15^th hole. After leaving his third shot short of the green, Day hit a laser-like chip that hit the flagstick and dropped into the hole. He followed that with a birdie on 16 and another gutsy par on the island green of 17.

It was not his best round, but Day showed his toughness and skill by the way he grinded out the final holes.

Hideki Matsuyama, Alex Cejka and Ken Duke are tied for second at 10 under par. Day and Matsuyama will play together Sunday in the final pairing.