Kurt Kitayama (1st/-9) holds the 54-hole lead/co-lead for the first time on the PGA TOUR after Day 3 of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
He has entered the final round T2 on four occasions, most recently at the 2023 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (T29).
Related: Kurt Kitayama sparkles in 50th PGA Tour start
Making 50th career PGA TOUR start; Kitayama will become the first player since Robert Gamez (1990) to win in his debut appearance at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
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Is a three-time runner-up on TOUR (T2/2022 Mexico Open at Vidanta, 2nd/2022 Genesis Scottish Open, 2nd/2022 CJ CUP in South Carolina).
Scottie Scheffler (T2/-8) can return to World No. 1 (currently No. 2) if he wins and Jon Rahm (currently T44) does not finish solo-second or in a two-way tie for second; finishes solo-second, Rahm finishes worse than a 2-way T9 and Rory McIlroy does not win; finishes in a two-way T2, Rahm finishes worse than solo-25th and McIlroy does not win.
Will become the first player since Tiger Woods in 2007 to successfully defend multiple titles in a season.
Scheffler is seeking to post the fourth successful title defence of the season (Max Homa/Fortinet Championship, McIlroy/THE CJ CUP in South Carolina, Scheffler/WM Phoenix Open); there were five successful title defenses on TOUR last season (most since
2007).
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Viktor Hovland’s (T2/-8) 66 matches his best score in 19 rounds at the event (R2/2022) and his first sub-70 score in nine weekend rounds at Bay Hill.
Is making his fifth start at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, with his best showing a T2 by one stroke to Scottie Scheffler in 2022.
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Tyrrell Hatton (4th/-7) equalled his best score in 27 rounds at the Arnold Palmer Invitational with a 6-under 66; previous 66s also came in the third round (2019/T29, 2021/T21); has three top-five finishes in six prior starts at Bay Hill, led by a win in
2020 and T2 in 2022; would become the eighth multiple winner of the event and first since Matt Every in 2015.
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2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational champion McIlroy (T5/-6) has finished worse than T13 just once (T27/2016) in eight prior starts at the event.
With a second-consecutive 4-over 76, Rahm (T44/+1) posts back-to-back rounds of 76 or worse for the first time since the first two rounds of the 2018 U.S. Open (78-77).
