The third round of The American Express, played on Saturday in California, helped bring order to the tournament. With the first 54 holes now complete, all players have rotated through the three courses used from Thursday to Saturday — La Quinta, the Nicklaus Course and the Pete Dye Stadium Course. The leaderboard is now a fair reflection of both the fight for the title and the list of players heading home before Sunday’s final round.
At the top of the leaderboard, three names stand out: South Korea’s Si Woo Kim (−22), who leads after signing for a 66 at La Quinta, one of the easiest tracks in the tournament; world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (−21), who ground out a solid 68 on the Stadium Course; and teenage sensation Blades Brown (−21), who continues to hold off the stars and heads into the final 18 holes tied for second with everything still to play for.
Further down the leaderboard are several big names who failed to make the cut, which was set at 10 under par. Among them are Tony Finau (−9), Justin Rose (−8), who battled to the end but took on too much risk at the demanding par-3 17th, and last year’s champion Sepp Straka (−2), whose title defence ended in disappointment with a tied 138th-place finish.
Never count out Scottie 💪
The World No. 1 will play for his 20th career victory tomorrow @TheAmExGolf. pic.twitter.com/YAFz5tCQCp
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 25, 2026
Kim is chasing what would be his fifth PGA TOUR victory and his second at this event, having already won The American Express in 2021. Scheffler is in pursuit of his 20th TOUR title and his first win in January. To date, he has won tournaments in every month from February through September, but never in the opening events of a new season. Brown, meanwhile, despite his striking youth, is thinking beyond simply winning or securing his card — he is already dreaming of Augusta and the Masters. He is confidence personified.
The world No. 1 showed a strong version of his game on Saturday. Scheffler was sharp off the tee, missed few greens, scrambled well and holed some key putts. He did let a few chances slip, including an eagle putt on the 16th and a birdie attempt on the 17th that refused to drop, but he made up for it by draining an eight-metre par putt on the 18th after a chip from the rough ran well past the hole.
Brown looked to be slipping away after reaching the 16th tee at one under par for the day, with two birdies and a bogey, but he closed with three straight birdies to thrust himself back into contention. Kim appears to hold a slight edge — not so much because of his narrow one-shot lead, but due to how well he played the Stadium Course on Saturday. That venue hosts the final round and is widely regarded as the toughest of the three layouts used this week.
The final battle for the season’s second PGA TOUR trophy is set, with three clear frontrunners — and a long list of challengers waiting in the wings. Names such as Eric Cole (−20), Wyndham Clark (−20), Tom Hoge (−19), Matt McCarty (−19), J.T. Poston (−18) and even Jacob Bridgeman (−17), Patrick Cantlay (−17), Sam Stevens (−17), Haotong Li (−17) and Austin Smotherman (−17) remain within striking distance, albeit with a bit of ground to make up on a course that does not give much away.
