Florida: Defending champion Paul Casey held on for a one-stroke third-round lead over world No. 1 Dustin Johnson at the Valspar Championship in Florida on Saturday.
England’s Casey shot 68 to top of the leaderboard at nine-under 204, but what had been a three-stroke lead dwindled to one after a bogey at the last.
Johnson applied the pressure with a 67 and fellow American Jason Kokrak (66) was close behind on 206, thanks in part to a hole in one at the par-three 15th. England’s Luke Donald and American Scott Stallings were also in contention after both shot rounds of 70 to finish on 207.
“I was patient for the most part and aggressive ... when I had opportunities and game felt really, really good,” said Casey, who is seeking to become the first back-to-back winner in the 19 years of the event.
“Looking forward to tomorrow, playing with Dustin is going to be very exciting,” said Casey. “Any time I got a chance to go up against world No. 1 I’m excited about that.”
