Live notes: Third round of The Barclays

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Rookie Kevin Streelman is leading a tournament after 54 holes for the first time in his young PGA TOUR career.

The PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup has started at The Barclays, and PGATOUR.COM's team is on the scene in Paramus, N.J. We'll provide updates all day Saturday with our live third-round notes.

THIRD ROUND: Leaderboard | PGA TOUR Shot Tracker | LIVE@ coverage | Live FedExCup points projection

LATE'S NOT GREAT: How impressive was Kevin Streelman's 3-under 68 that vaulted him to the top of The Barclays leaderboard? Of the 15 lowest rounds shot on Saturday, Streelman had the latest tee time.

In fact, Streelman had the lowest round of any player in the last seven pairings, as Ridgewood Country Club toughened up considerably late in the afternoon. And only Streelman and Mike Weir (4 under 67) were among those 15 lowest rounds who teed off at noon or later.

That could make a big difference if the players face similar conditions, as expected, in Sunday's final round.

"This golf course is very, very difficult," said Paul Casey, who shot a 2-under 69 after teeing off in the fifth to last group. "Most of (the low scores) have come from the morning groups, when the greens have been slightly more forgiving, slightly more receptive."

That means perhaps someone teeing off in the middle of the day will manage a 66 and wait to see if somebody can match it.

"Might be a slight advantage to be out (early)," Casey said, "a guy who is kind of 6 under or something like that, (who can) take advantage of some good greens and post a number and we have to go catch him."

Here are the players with the 15 lowest rounds of Saturday and their times in which they teed off (Click here for Sunday's final-round tee times): -- Mike McAllister (7:45 p.m. ET)

STREELMAN AND THE FEDEXCUP: Should Kevin Streelman go on to win The Barclays on Sunday, he will have made a huge jump in the race for the FedExCup.

Streelman

When the tournament started on Thursday, Streelman was 102nd in points and just looking to secure his spot and advance to next week's Deutsche Bank Championship, which will field the top 120 in points after Sunday.

A win on Sunday would now vault Steelman all the way to the top of the FedExCup points.

Other benefits should he win -- a two-year TOUR exemption; an invite to the Masters; and an opportunity to open U.S. Captain Paul Azinger's eyes to the possibility of naming the rookie as one of his captain's picks.

The biggest prize is that two-year exemption. "That's been a long battle to get here," Streelman said, "so knowing that yo uhave two years to get here would free up a lot of anxiety and stress."

And if Streelman should win, he would be just the second rookie to win on TOUR this year, Chez Reavie having won the RBC Canadian Open last month. -- Mike McAllister (6:03 p.m. ET)

FINAL GROUP DONE: Of their last 12 holes, Steve Stricker and Hunter Mahan were a combined 14 over, with two double bogeys (both by Mahan), one triple bogey (by Stricker), seven bogeys and no birdies. In fact, in just three of those 12 holes did Stricker and Mahan both manage par.

Yet they're not out of it. At 4 under, they're just four shots out of the lead in a Sunday final round in which 21 players will be within four shots are better of Kevin Streelman's lead of 8 under.

Stricker and Mahan, by the way, will be paired together again in the final round. But instead of being in the last group to tee off, they're be in the 11th group left to tee off. -- Mike McAllister (5:50 p.m. ET)

WEIR IN GREAT SHAPE: Mike Weir is sitting pretty going into Sunday's final round. He's one off the pace currently held by Kevin Streelman. For Weir, it's almost better for him to work from behind going into the final round than carrying the target on his back. Seven of his eight PGA TOUR wins have been the come-from-behind type.

"I seem to be comfortable there," Weir said, although he added that he'd "like to be in the lead sometime and telling you how I'll stretch a lead out from in front."

Here are Weir's come-from-behind wins (his only win when leading after 54 holes is the 2004 Nissan Open):: -- Mike McAllister (5:22 p.m. ET)

STREELMAN IN THE LEAD: Rookie Kevin Streelman just put the wraps on his 3-under 68 that gives him the outright lead at 8 under. Should his lead hold, it would be Streelman's first 54-hole lead of his young TOUR career. -- Mike McAllister (5:17 p.m. ET)

VIJAY'S BIG MOVE: Vijay Singh started the day nine shots behind leader Steve Stricker. He was four off the lead when he finished. And 20 minutes later? Singh was tied for the then-lead at 7-under 206.

Singh

The two-time former Barclays champion -- pre-FedEx Cup and when the tournament was played at Westchester Country Club -- birdied three consecutive holes down the stretch to throw out a third-round 66.

"When I started, everybody was under par and thought I would just go out there and play a solid round of golf and see what happens,'' he said. "That's what I did.''

Singh went out 2-under for the day, then birdied the 14th, 15th and 16th holes.

"I didn't expect too much out of anybody else but me,'' he said. "I just went out there and I said, 'Just play.' I'm swinging well and I'm putting really, really well. I feel really good about the putting part. So just get the ball on the green and give it a chance, and that's what I did.''

Now, like a leader board of others, he's one round away from winning the first leg of the Playoffs.

"My goal is to win and that's still my goal,'' Singh said. "That's my plan right now and we'll go from there.''

He did say the players face tough conditions for the final round.

"It's dried out quite a bit,'' he said. "The rough is less thicker than what it was Tuesday when we played. I think they stopped watering it, so you can actually play. It's playable, and some places, you can get yourself in big trouble. But I think it's playing really well. The greens have been drying out really fast, and depending where the pin is tomorrow, it's going to be a tough day.'' -- Melanie Hauser (4:59 p.m. ET)

MIDDLE MUDDLE: We've been harping on the middle stretch at Ridgewood all afternoon, and with good reason -- it has completely turned The Barclays into a wide-open race.

Consider the final group of the day, Steve Stricker and Hunter Mahan.

Stricker was rolling at 12 under for the tournament going into the seventh hole. When he emerged six holes later, he had lost five strokes and the outright lead, thanks to bogeys at the seventh and 11th holes, and a triple-bogey at the 12th.

Mahan, meanwhile, was 10 under going into the seventh. Six holes later, he was 5 under, having bogeyed the ninth and double-bogeys at the eighth and 12th.

If we're doing the math correctly, that's a collective 10 over par for the then-two players atop the leaderboard. -- Mike McAllister (4:52 p.m. ET)

STREELMAN'S PUTT: A 25-foot dogleg right putt that Kevin Streelman just nailed for birdie at the par-4 16th has given him the lead at 8 under. Will a rookie be leading The Barclays going into the final round?

For more on Streelman, click here. -- Mike McAllister (4:44 p.m. ET)

OUCH!: Steve Stricker just triple-bogeyed the par-4 12th when he had to take a drop after losing his approach shot in the trees and brush. Result? Six players are now tied for the lead at 7 under: Stricker, Mike Weir, Paul Casey, Kevin Streelman, Sergio Garcia and Vijay Singh, who's the clubhouse leader after wrapping up a 5-under 66.

Here's how Stricker made triple-bogey on the 12th. according to PGA TOUR ShotLink: -- Mike McAllister (4:39 p.m. ET):

FINAL FOUR PAIRINGS: Of the last eight players to tee off Saturday, just two -- Sergio Garcia and Kevin Streelman -- currently are under par for their rounds. Both Garcia and Streelman at 2 under for their rounds (7 under overall). -- Mike McAllister (4:15 p.m. ET)

HERE COMES DA BEARD: Mike Weir, sporting his Playoffs beard this week, is now 7 under for the tournament after rolling in his six-foot putt for birdie at the par-3 15th.

That puts Weir into a five-way tie for second with Vijay Singh, Kevin Streelman, Sergio Garcia and Hunter Mahan, who is trying to hold it together after his double-bogey on the par-3 eighth when he hit into a green-side bunker, then three-putted from 29-1/2 feet. -- Mike McAllister (4:10 p.m. ET)

CUP OF WONDER: Robert Allenby hit the cup on each of his first nine holes. Some of those shots fell; others didn't.

Allenby

He hit the pin twice. One dropped down to a couple of milimeters. Another ran past the hole and he missed the eagle putt. And he only missed one green.

Now do you understand why he felt like he left something on the course after his 5-under-par 66?

"I thought it was a day when I could have shot 8 or 9 under,'' said Allenby, who likely moved into -- at worst -- the top 10 fray at 5-under 208. "It could have been a lot better than it was.

". . . When you hit it as good as I did today worst number you're going to make it 5 under.''

Allenby dropped birdies from 10 feet at the first, third and fourth holes, lipped out a 10 footer at the second and hit the pin at out of the bunker at the drivable par-4 fifth hole.

His only miscue -- and missed green -- was at 16 when he flew a wedge over the green. "That was a mis-club or a mis-yardage,'' he said. "I haven't figured it out yet.''

The Australian, who is currently 11th on the FedEx Cup list, opened with rounds of 69-73, which was very good considering he was jet-lagged from a quick trip to Australia last week to see his mother. He stumbled Friday with the jet lag, but got back on course Saturday.

"At the end of the day, 5-under's better than level (par),'' he said. (To replay Allenby's round, click here.) -- Melanie Hauser (3:45 p.m. ET)

OH, THAT MIDDLE STRETCH: As noted earlier, the stretch between holes 7-12 is the toughest at Ridgewood, so players need to navigate that safely.

Consider the plight of Andres Romero. He had a bogey-free round going into the eighth hole, then proceeded to bogey five straight. George McNeill, meanwhile, had four consecutive bogeys starting at the ninth hole to fall off the pace.

Lucas Glover was 3 under for the tournament going into the 11th, then took two bogeys -- and followed that with a triple-bogey 8 at the 13th hole. After another bogey at the 14th, he suddenly found himself at 3 over for the tournament. -- Mike McAllister (3:30 p.m. ET)

NOTABLES UPDATE: Vijay Singh is climbing into contention on Moving Day. He's at 4 under for his round and 6 under for the tournament as he plays his finishing holes Saturday. ...

Masters champion Trevor Immelman, on the other hand, had a rough third round, shooting 5-over 76 that included bogeys on both of the back-nine par 5s. ...

Jim Furyk had a solid 3-under 68 and is 4 under for the tournament. ...

Phil Mickelson just completed his third round, a 1-over 72 that included a double-bogey at the short par-4 fifth. He's at 1 under going into Sunday. -- Mike McAllister (3:15 p.m. ET)

MAHAN FROM THE BUNKER: Nifty, if a little unconventional, birdie for Hunter Mahan on the short par-4 fifth.

Mahan tried to drive the green, but his tee shot found the primary rough just short and right of the green. With a tough lie, his next shot landed in the bunker just a few yards ahead. Then, from out of the bunker, Mahan holed out for his birdie.

That gave Mahan his second birdie and puts him at 9 under for the tournament. After a disappointing day on Friday, Mahan appears to have regained the touch that fueled him to a course-record 9-under 62 in the first round. -- Mike McAllister (2:59 p.m. ET)

STRICKER EXTENDS LEAD: Thanks to two birdies in his first three holes, Steve Stricker now has a four-stroke lead over Hunter Mahan and Sergio Garcia, who just birdied the fifth hole and is now tied with Mahan at 8 over. -- Mike McAllister (2:33 p.m. ET)

HOW TO PLAY RIDGEWOOD: Ken Duke made a statement earlier today to our Helen Ross that in playing Ridgewood, you have to "play" the first part; "hang on" in the second part; and "score" in the last part.

We crunched the numbers and Duke is absolutely right. The middle six holes are easily the most treacherous stretch on the course, so the key for the contenders this afternoon and in Sunday's final round will be to start and end fast -- and avoid mistakes through the middle third.

Here's how the numbers looked at the time when the final pairing Saturday -- Steve Stricker and Hunter Mahan -- started their rounds: -- Mike McAllister (2:05 p.m. ET)

DAY'S LIGHT: Jason Day came to Ridgewood Country Club knowing that he had work to do. He was ranked 127th in the FedExCup and only the top 120 at the end of The Barclays would advance to the second Playoff event.

Day

When he shot 74 in the first round, the 20-year-old Aussie's job got even tougher. But Day has gotten better as the week progressed -- shooting 68 Friday to assure he'd make the cut and following with Saturday's 66 to climb the leaderboard.

"I was outside the 120 mark for next week," Day acknowledged. "So I needed to make the cut. I had actually had a really good round yesterday to come back. I've been playing great all year and I just haven't scored that well. The last couple of days, I've done the right things on the course."

Now Day, who has a 54-hole total of 5 under, can allow himself to look past next week's Deutsche Bank Championship.

"We're looking what we need to do to get in the third week, and hopefully, get into the fourth week," he said. "We're moving in the right direction. (We just need to) keep working hard and just make the right decisions."

The talented youngster earned his PGA TOUR card for this year after finishing fifth on the Nationwide Tour money list and becoming the youngest winner on either Tour at the age of 19 years, 7 months and 26 days.

His rookie season has been a mixed bag, though, with two top-20s in his first four starts, including solo sixth at Pebble Beach. Day then missed eight cuts in his next nine starts, and he is only now recovering from a muscle strain under one of his ribs.

"I played well early on," Day said. "But then I hurt my back and I couldn't practice that much. I've been working pretty hard and it's coming around nicely."

When asked to detail his birdies Saturday, Day thought for a minute, smiled and said he couldn't remember. He was proud of that 38-footer he holed for a par at the eighth hole and the15-footer he made for another at the par-5 13th hole, though.

"Those are the putts you need to hole to keep the momentum going," Day said. "I'm still a long way back from Steve (Stricker). We'll just take it one step at a time and try to put a good score on the board tomorrow and we'll see how it goes." -- Helen Ross (2:05 p.m. ET)

THE BOMBERS: Here are the longest drives and longest putts in each of the first two rounds at Ridgewood: -- Mike McAllister (1:30 p.m. ET)

CURTIS UPDATE: Ben Curtis must be feeling good in his Jets colors today. He has opened his third round with three straight birdies and is now at 6 under for the tournament. -- Mike McAllister (1:20 p.m. ET)

DUKE ON HIS ROUND: A back-nine birdie binge enabled Ken Duke to make a big leap up the leaderboard early Saturday..

Duke

Duke made five birdies in a row starting at the par-5 13th hole to fuel a solid 67 that left him at 3 under for the tournament. He was tied for 17th when he finished the third round after starting the day on the cut line at 1 over.

"It was good," Duke said. "I hit some good shots. I chipped in one time which makes a difference and made a long one. From there on I hit some good shots."

Duke's first birdie came after he atoned for what he called a "bad drive and a bad second shot" -- hitting a rescue club to 6 feet from 267 yards out. He chipped in from15 feet at the 14th hole, then made putts of 30, 8 and 2 feet for his next three birdies.

Duke had a chance for a sixth straight birdie at the 18th hole but his 10-footer stubbornly refused to fall. Even so, the 2006 Nationwide Tour Player of the Year was happy with the streak.

"(You) feel like (you're going to) hit good shots and going to make the putts and that's a good feeling to have," said Duke, who ranks 51st in the FedExCup.

Like most of the players in the first Playoff event, Duke divides Ridgewood into three distinct segments. The first five holes, which he played in 2 under, are the birdie holes while Nos. 6-12, where he made three consecutive bogeys, are the most unyielding.

"(You've) got to play the first part, hang on the middle part and hope to score on the last part," Duke explained.

Duke was in the second group off the tee on Saturday morning. He found the course much softer than it had been the previous afternoon, "but it will get firmer and fast as the day goes on."

At any rate, he did what he set out to do. "That's what's Saturday all about -- try to move up and that's what we did," he said. (To replay Duke's round, click here.) -- Helen Ross (12:43 p.m. ET)

CURTIS' COLORS: Ben Curtis, who tied for second at the PGA Championship two weeks ago, is playing it on both sides this week with his Reebok/NFL apparel. Smart move considering how close Ridgewood is to Giants Stadium, home of both the Giants and Jets.

Getty Images

Curtis, who wore the Jets colors in the first round and Giants colors in the second round, just teed off for his third round. He's back in Jets colors today, which should make Brett Favre happy. -- Mike McAllister (12:40 p.m. ET)

SUB-70 CABRERA: Former U.S. Open champion Angel Cabrera hasn't been in contention much on the PGA TOUR this year; in fact, he doesn't have a top-10 finish in any of his 13 stroke-play TOUR starts in 2008 (he did finish T5 in the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship).

Cabrera

But he seems to have found his game this week at Ridgewood. His 69-67 start puts him at 6 under for the tournament heading into Saturday's third round (he tees off in the penultimate group with Dudley Hart at 1:40 p.m. ET).

Those back-to-back sub-70 rounds is just the second such stretch he's had this year on TOUR. He shot 68-68 on the weekend at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational earlier this month. On the European Tour, he started The Barclays Scottish Open with 65-68 before stumbling to a 78 in the third round.

Cabrera's success this week has been his Greens In Regulation (28 of 36, tying him for No. 1 in that category), and Fairways Hit (20 of 28, tying him for 11th). We'll see if he can keep that accuracy going this weekend. -- Mike McAllister (12:20 p.m. ET)

MICKELSON UPDATE: Phil Mickelson was looking to make a move this weekend, but through his first four holes Saturday, he remains even par for his round (2 under for the tournament). Mickelson is playing with Briny Baird; you can follow that pairing on PGATOUR.COM's new Shot Tracker by clicking here. -- Mike McAllister (12:04 p.m. ET)

TRIPLE PLAYS: There seem to be several players in the early going Saturday who have put together streaks of three or more birdies.

Besides Ken Duke, who had five straight birdies in his last six holes, the others include: Stewart Cink (holes 12-14); K.J. Choi (holes 1-3); Robert Allenby (holes 3-5); Justin Bolli (holes 4-6); and Jim Furyk (holes 2-4).

Choi, by the way, made the turn in 31 and was on pace to tie Hunter Mahan's 9-under 62 that he shot in the first round. But a couple of bogeys on the back nine has derailed Choi's momentum. -- Mike McAllister (12:01 p.m. ET)

NEARLY SIX: Ken Duke just finished his round by nearly holing a 10-foot putt that would have given him six consecutive birdies to finish his round. Duke settled for par and a 4-under 67 -- 31 on the back nine -- that puts him at 3-under for the tournament. -- Mike McAllister (11:55 a.m. ET)

DUKE'S BIRDIE STREAK: Ken Duke, who went off in the second group Saturday morning, has a string of five straight birdies going into the finishing hole at Ridgewood. That's the longest birdie streak this week. In that stretch, Duke holed out from the intermediate rough just off the 14th green, then dropped a 31-foot bomb on the 15th. -- Mike McAllister (11:45 a.m. ET)

FEDEXCUP UPDATE: In case you missed it, PGATOUR.COM's FedExCup guru, Steve Dennis, is projecting that the field is essentially set for next week's Deutsche Bank Championship. "Fifteen players seeded outside the top 120 have played their way into the Deutsche Bank Championship by making the cut, and of course, 15 players seeded between 93rd and 120th have played their way out by missing the cut," writes Dennis. (For his full report, click here.)

Of course, there is still plenty of FedExCup positioning going on this weekend at Ridgewood Country Club. Players will be trying to improve their spot in the FedExCup standings, and moving into the top 30 is key, since only the top 30 players advance to THE TOUR Championship with a shot to win the FedExCup.

Be sure to check out PGATOUR.COM's real-time points projection, which will keep you updated on all the FedExCup movement. -- Mike McAllister (11:30 a.m. ET)