RBC Canadian Open Round 3: Manassero and Fox Share the Lead as 13 Players Pack Within Three

Saturday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley turned into a game of musical chairs, and at one point there were 11 players standing in the same spot. When the music finally stopped, Matteo Manassero and Ryan Fox were the ones sitting at the top.

Manassero and Fox each shot 6-under 64 to share the 54-hole lead at the RBC Canadian Open at 14-under 196. Kevin Yu and Lee Hodges both shot 63, the low round of the day, and sit one back at 13 under with Matt McCarty, who shot 64. Andrew Putnam, Jake Knapp and Canada's Mackenzie Hughes are two back at 12 under, and 36-hole leader Cameron Champ slid back to 11 under after a birdie-free 71. According to the PGA TOUR, 13 players start Sunday within three shots of the lead.

The Prodigy, Grown Up

Manassero's story is one of the best in golf. He tied for 13th at the 2009 Open Championship as a 16-year-old and won the BMW PGA Championship at 20, then took the long way back, rebuilding on the DP World Tour before earning his PGA TOUR card last year. Now 32, he has eight international wins but none yet on the PGA TOUR, and this season has been a grind, with only two top-25 finishes in 11 starts.

On Saturday, he looked like the kid who once seemed destined for everything. Manassero held the outright lead late in the round until a three-putt bogey on the 17th. He answered right away on the par-5 18th, knocking a third shot from about 80 yards to 2 feet for a closing birdie.

"I missed the short one on 17, and I did miss a couple more short ones today," Manassero said.

He also said the long road back has given him a better perspective, especially for a day like Sunday.

Fox Plays Free

Fox did his damage early. The New Zealander was 5 under for the day at the turn and closed with a birdie on the 18th to match Manassero's 64.

The 38-year-old is playing with something he did not have a year ago: a PGA TOUR win. Fox won the Myrtle Beach Classic in a playoff last month for his first TOUR title, then followed it with a tie for 28th at the PGA Championship and a tie for 20th at the Memorial. He told reporters that the first win changed how he feels out here.

"I just feel a bit more comfortable in my own shoes," Fox said.

There is a lot riding on Sunday beyond the trophy. Fox came into the week ranked No. 75 in the world, and the top 60 in next week's ranking get into the U.S. Open at Oakmont. The PGA TOUR noted that a top-five finish would likely get him there.

Three More Chasing a Second Win

The group one back is full of interesting stories. Hodges broke a rib in February when he tripped on a set of stairs during the Cognizant Classic and missed six weeks. He then missed five straight cuts before making the cut at Colonial. His 63 tied for the best round of the day. Yu, who won his first TOUR title at the Sanderson Farms Championship last fall, also shot 63, and he finished one shot out of the Myrtle Beach playoff last month. McCarty, whose maiden win came at the Black Desert Championship last fall, quietly added a 64.

Every one of them is one good Sunday away from a second PGA TOUR title.

The Native Son

Canada's best hope for a second national champion in three years is Hughes. The Dundas, Ontario, native made eight birdies, came home in 31 on the back nine and shot 64 to move to 12 under, two back. Hughes also lost a playoff at Myrtle Beach last month, the same event Fox won.

It is familiar territory in a less comfortable way. Hughes was the low Canadian after 54 holes at last year's Canadian Open in Hamilton before a final-round 70 left him short. He has two TOUR wins and served as a standard bearer at this event as a kid in 2003.

"It's anyone's game at this point. No one's been able to totally light this place on fire yet," Hughes said.

Hughes is one of eight Canadians who made the cut. Adam Hadwin (65), Taylor Pendrith (67) and Nick Taylor (69) are all four back at 10 under. Taylor at least gave the crowd one more moment, closing with an eagle on the 18th.

Champ Stalls

Champ went 36 holes without a bogey to start the week, but Saturday was a different kind of struggle. He did not make a single birdie, signed for a 1-over 71 and fell three shots off the pace into a tie for ninth. The eighth alternate is still very much in it, but he will need to find the scoring touch that disappeared on Saturday. Sam Burns (68) and Shane Lowry (68) are four back.

Sunday Setup

The weather was another storyline. Smoke from wildfires in Manitoba and Ontario had been hanging over the area, though air quality improved from unhealthy to moderate on Saturday.

With 13 players inside three shots and a course that has rewarded aggressive play all week, nobody has run away from anybody. Manassero has the pedigree and the patience. Fox has the fresh win and the Oakmont carrot. Hughes has a country behind him. As Hughes put it, someone near the top could shoot something silly on Sunday and blow the whole thing open.

Catch up on the week in our Round 1 recap and Round 2 recap. Full scoring is on the official PGA TOUR leaderboard (opens in a new tab), and the TOUR's Round 3 recap (opens in a new tab) has more.

Sources: PGA TOUR (Round 3 recap, Five Things to Know, leaderboard), The Canadian Press, Field Level Media. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: PGA TOUR.