WGC-Bridgestone Invitational 2018: Justin Thomas Leads After Round 3

Justin Thomas continued his strong play at the 2018 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational on Saturday with a 67 that left him in sole possession of the lead. 

After being tied for the top spot on Friday, Thomas finally got some separation during the third round. He leads Rory McIlroy and Ian Poulter by three strokes at 14 under par. Jason Day is one shot behind McIlroy and Poulter in fourth place at 10 under par. 

Here's how the top of the leaderboard looks with 18 holes remaining at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio:

1. Justin Thomas (-14)

T2. Rory McIlroy (-11)

T2. Ian Poulter (-11)

4. Jason Day (-10)

T5. Marc Leishman (-9)

T5. Kyle Stanley (-9)

T7. Rickie Fowler (-8)

T7. Jon Rahm (-8)

T9. Tommy Fleetwood (-7)

T9.  Louis Oosthuizen (-7)

Full leaderboard available at PGATour.com.

Thomas was wild at the start of his round with two bogeys and one birdie through five holes. He had to follow up a spectacular second-round performance that saw him post seven birdies en route to shooting a 64. 

After the rough opening stretch, Thomas got himself back on track. The 25-year-old hit five birdies and just one bogey over the final 13 holes. Once Thomas got out in front of the pack, Jason Sobel of the Action Network shared this quote from McIlroy:

That trait will serve Thomas well heading into the final round as he chases his third win of the season. Recent events have been a struggle for the world's third-ranked golfer. He finished 25th at the U.S. Open, 56th at the Travelers Championship and missed the cut at the British Open. 

A victory this week will also go a long way toward boosting Thomas' confidence as he looks to repeat at the PGA Championship next weekend. 

Day has been lying in the weeds waiting to make a move seemingly all weekend. He started and ended the third round in fourth place but is only four shots off the pace. His best shot of the day was from the rough on No. 15 that moved his score to 10 under par:

Poulter and Tommy Fleetwood started the round tied with Thomas for the top spot. Poulter missed an opportunity to make his move by posting an even-par 70 on Saturday. He fared much better than Fleetwood, who dropped into a tie for ninth thanks to a four-over-par round. 

Driving accuracy went from Poulter's greatest strength in the first round to a liability. The English star had an 85.7 accuracy percentage off the tee on Thursday, but that number dropped to 57.1 on Friday and 35.7 Saturday. 

Two players who would have happily traded places with Poulter on this day were Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. 

Both stars began the day on the fringes of contention with Woods at six under par and Mickelson one shot behind him. They ended Round 3 as part of a six-way tie for 28th at three under. 

Woods' round fell apart on the back nine when he had a run of three bogeys in four holes from No. 11 through 14. He nearly went into the clubhouse with an eagle thanks to this shot on 18:

Mickelson's two-over 72 consisted of two birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey on No. 13. The third round has been Lefty's Achilles heel all season with a scoring average of 71, his worst of any round in 2018 and 128th among all players on the PGA Tour.

The field will attempt to chase Thomas down with 18 holes left to play. He has been the most consistent player all weekend and is showing no signs of giving in while pursuing his first win on the tour since February.