Nick Taylor began the third round of the PGA Championship on the outside looking in, but after a sensational Saturday round at Aronimink Golf Club, the Abbotsford, B.C., golfer finds himself in an unfamiliar position: in contention at a major championship.
Taylor, who was 1 over par for the tournament entering the day, carded a bogey-free, 5-under 65 to move 28 spots up the leaderboard and into a five-way tie for second at 4 under, two shots behind 54-hole leader Alex Smalley. The Canuck is level with Europeans Ludvig Aberg, Aaron Rai, Mattie Schmid and two-time major champion Jon Rahm, with whom he will play in the penultimate group on Sunday.
“Everything was very good today,” said Taylor, whose 65 matched the lowest round of the day. “I drove it great on that front nine to give myself a few wedges and be able to go for the ninth hole par 5 in two. The iron game was definitely kind of back to myself, in a sense, where it’s the strength of my game and today gave myself a lot of opportunities.”
The 38-year-old was paired with fellow Canadian Corey Conners on moving day and the two were vibing early at Aronimink. Taylor was bogey-free on the opening nine, carding birdies on Nos. 3, 6 and 9. Conners was also 3 under on the front, making four birdies to go along with one bogey.
Nick Taylor’s 5-under 65 on Saturday at Aronimink tied his career-low round at a major championship. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
“Corey and I both made three or four birdies on that front nine and I had that momentum going,” said Taylor. “I feel like the back nine here, you kind of try to hold on to what your score was on that front nine.”
After opening the second side with four straight pars, Taylor put a circle on his scorecard at the par-3 14th, sticking his approach to 11 feet and cashing the birdie bid. He added another birdie at the par-5 15th, hitting a beautiful flop shot to inside six feet and pouring in the putt to move to 4 under for the tournament. He had good birdie chances on 17 and 18, too, but was unable to convert. Taylor’s 65 matched the lowest round of his major championship career, tying the score he he posted at the 2009 U.S. Open when he was an amateur.
“It was kind of a grind of a day and today I just hit it really nice and had a lot of opportunities,” said Taylor, who ranked second in the field in strokes gained approach on Saturday. “I made two great saves on 10 and 12, where I had to kind of wedge it out of the rough and then get up-and-down from 70 to 90 yards, which really kept the round going.”
The back nine was not as kind to Conners, who, after making a birdie on No. 10, made bogeys on six of his remaining eight holes to fall out of contention. He signed for a round of 2-over 72 and sits at 3 over par for the tournament in a tie for 52nd. Taylor Pendrith, on the other hand, had a good day with a 3-under 67. He is tied for 44th heading into Sunday.
“It was comfortable pairing with Corey,” said Taylor. “I felt we were both rolling it early. Unfortunately, he didn’t finish the round off, but it was just a comfortable day and it was nice to have momentum.”
Taylor wasn’t the only man who started back in the pack Saturday to play his way into a late Sunday tee time. Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele both carded rounds of 4-under 66 and are right behind Taylor on the leaderboard at 3 under par. The major champions are two of 29 players within five shots of the lead.
“I think it’s so bunched, it’s kind of pointless (to look at leaderboards),” said Taylor. “I’ll definitely be aware late tomorrow, if I’m in that position. But with so many things going on, it’s just a distraction if you start looking at it.”
Sunday will be Taylor’s first time in contention in a final round at a major championship. His best result at a major is a T23, which came at the 2025 U.S. Open. While his resumé in the big four events is lacking, he is a proven winner on the PGA Tour with five victories to his name and a perfect 3-0 record in playoffs, which includes his win at the 2023 RBC Canadian Open, where he became the first Canadian in 69 years to win his national open.
Now, he has a chance to make history once again and become the first player from Canada to hoist the Wanamaker trophy and join Mike Weir as the only Canadian men to win a major golf championship.
There is a lot on the line for Taylor on Sunday, and that’s normally when he is at his best.