2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson leaderboard: Scottie Scheffler cuts Si Woo Kim’s lead to two after Round 3

Si Woo Kim began Saturday at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson with a five-shot lead, but as he walked off TPC Craig Ranch after his third round he suddenly had much closer company at the top of the leaderboard.

A 3-under 68 to reach 21 under was not enough for Kim to extend his advantage on a soft, gettable golf course in ideal conditions on Saturday afternoon, as the inclement weather that pushed tee times up never materialized. With players treated to perfect scoring conditions, there were once again plenty of low rounds on the course, with Scottie Scheffler producing one of them to pull within two shots of Kim’s lead.

Scheffler is tied with Wyndham Clark in second place at 19 under heading into Sunday’s final round after they both shot matching 6-under 65s from the penultimate group, drafting off each other to pull closer to Kim. Scheffler, aiming for back-to-back wins at the Byron Nelson, got off to a bit of a slow start, as he was even for his round after a bogey on No. 4. He quickly righted the ship and got himself rolling with six birdies in his next nine holes to march up the leaderboard, leaning on his always excellent ball-striking and some quality putting on the new greens at TPC Craig Ranch.

With that performance, Scheffler earned himself a spot in the final pairing alongside his good buddy Kim on Sunday afternoon. That will be a very comfortable final round group for the two who play together often at Royal Oaks Country Club about 30 minutes away from TPC Craig Ranch. Kim got the better of that pairing in the first two rounds, and while plenty of players may feel the pressure of being paired with the World No. 1, it will feel extremely normal for Kim who won’t likely wilt under that spotlight.

That said, Kim will need to avoid another rough patch like he had in the middle of his third round, as he made three bogeys in a four-hole stretch from No. 8 to No. 11 that opened the door for Scheffler and Clark to join him at the top of the leaderboard. He was able to stabilize things from there and restore some order with a pair of late birdies to move back into the lead, but that big cushion he enjoyed on Friday night is much more tenuous after a busy Saturday in McKinney, Texas.

The leader

1. Si Woo Kim (-21)

Kim’s mid-round stumble is really the difference going into Sunday. He got a bit overly aggressive with his iron play and paid the price. That will be his challenge in the final round, as his aggression in attacking flags can get him into trouble, and with the always steady Scheffler right alongside, any mistakes are almost guaranteed to be punished. He can’t get too conservative because the scoring has been so good this week that he’ll need to keep pushing that lead into the mid-20s under par, but finding the right balance between trying to score and not taking on unnecessary risk will be critical for Kim to get his fifth career PGA Tour win.

Sunday contenders

T2. Scottie Scheffler, Wyndham Clark (-19)
T4. Sungjae Im, Stephan Jaeger, Tom Hoge (-17)
7. Zach Bouchou (-16)
T8. Brooks Koepka, Max Greyserman, Keith Mitchell, Jackson Suber (-15)
T12. Blades Brown, Tony Finau, Erik Van Rooyen, Kensei Hirata (-14)

With the lead at 21 under and Scheffler at 19 under, it’s hard to imagine the winning score not ending up at 24 under by the end of Sunday. We’ve seen some rounds in the 60-62 range this week, and that might be necessary for someone like Brooks Koepka to win this thing. Koepka put together a very solid round of golf and he’ll be kicking himself for not producing more on Friday when everyone was going crazy low around him.

Clark is within six shots of the lead coming into a final round for the first time since the American Express (which Scheffler won) in what’s been a brutal season for him. However, he’s found a putter that’s working and leads the field on the greens, which has him brimming with confidence and he looks much more like the guy who was a threat every time he teed it up a few years ago.

Im held his nerve well in the final pairing on Saturday and will be able to go out a few groups ahead of Kim and Scheffler to see if he can’t post a number. Jaeger and Hoge have been hanging around the leaderboard all week and are both very comfortable in the state of Texas. Hoge played college golf at TCU, while Jaeger got his first career win two years ago in Houston — holding off Scheffler in the process. They might be able to fly a bit under the radar on Sunday as they try to shoot some low numbers and threaten the leaders.

Then there’s Blades Brown, whose Saturday 65 vaulted him from T38 into T12 on the leaderboard. While it’s unlikely the 19-year-old shoots what’s needed to win on Sunday, he’s now firmly inside the number (solo 21st) he needs to earn special temporary exempt status for the rest of the season, as he looks to cement his PGA Tour card. He’ll need one more solid round to get there, but if so, he’ll become a fixture on Tour for the rest of the summer.

Updated 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson odds, picks

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

• Si Woo Kim (11/10)
• Scottie Scheffler (27/20)
• Wyndham Clark (7-1)
• Sungjae Im (27-1)
• Stephan Jaeger (35-1)
• Tom Hoge (55-1)
• Brooks Koepka (100-1)

Scheffler is almost at a coin flip with Kim now, which feels about right. That final pairing will be a blast to watch on Sunday and it’d be fairly shocking if one of those two aren’t the winner. I’m a little worried about how Clark’s putting holds up in the final round given that’s carried him so much of the week, but if he can keep it rolling, he’s very much alive at 7-1. It’s not impossible for someone to shoot a 62 and win this thing from further back, and if I had to guess who could pull that off I’d actually go with Jaeger for a sprinkle.