Hatton, who qualified for the Ryder Cup automatically despite playing on the LIV Golf circuit and therefore not accruing points from his home tour, was the pick of the rest as torrential rain and glorious sunshine took turns to cover this leafy corner of Surrey.
Starting the day seven back of Matsuyama, the Englishman caught fire around the turn, with a birdie at the sixth hole and then four in a row from the ninth to shoot up the leaderboard.
Hatton then picked up shots on 16, 17 and 18 to complete a bogey-free round of eight under and set the clubhouse target.
“It was a good day’s work,” he said. “The last 10 holes were great. I gave myself plenty of opportunities, and it’s always nice to see putts going in.”
Also a previous winner in 2020, Hatton edged out Ryder Cup team-mate Hovland to make the final group of three.
The Norwegian boasts top-five finishes on his previous two appearances here and, despite not capitalising on his hot start, he remains well placed at just three shots back, particularly with the volatile conditions set to continue on Sunday.
“This is a tournament I look forward to every single year,” added Hovland. “The crowds are awesome.
“It’s a great golf course, obviously a lot of history here, and I’d like to put my name on that trophy.”
Of the other big names in the European team, Jon Rahm and Shane Lowry are eight shots adrift and Rory McIlroy 10.
