By Chris Dunham, PGATOUR.COM Troy Matteson is in position to become just the third wire-to-wire winner in the history of the John Deere Classic and the first on TOUR since Rory McIlroy at the 2011 U.S. Open yet he’s still flying under the radar. The 32-year-old two-time PGA TOUR winner shot a 5-under 66 Saturday to push his lead to three with just 18 holes to play. Among those in close pursuit, however, are three-time defending champion Steve Stricker and local favorite Zach Johnson, who have combined for 20 TOUR victories. “Nobody's really paying any attention to what I do,” Matteson said. “I'll just go about my business. When Steve plays good or Zach plays really good, just does so much for the tournament. Those are the main guys people remember.” Matteson is putting together his own week to remember at TPC Deere Run. He’s posted a field-leading 21 birdies against just three bogeys through 36 holes and leads the field in strokes gained - putting. He’s doing all of this while hitting a field-worst 54 percent of fairways. “I really didn't hit too many bad shots today, Matteson said. “I only hit a couple and I got away with 'em. Only made a couple bogeys. One was a smart bogey. One on 18 I just misjudged the putt going down the hill.  It's got a little baked out and it's easy to knock it by.” He could forgive himself for the late three-putt on a day in which he rolled in three putts of more than 10 feet including a 35-footer from the fringe on No. 13. Matteson knows he may need more of those long putts to protect and improve upon his 18-under tally on a course that has already yielded 1,580 birdies this week. “I think you still need to be aggressive,” he said. “It's anybody's tournament. I mean, a guy at 12 under could shoot 60, you know. You have to come up with a lot of under‑par shots, so I think that you have to play aggressive. … And that's what the John Deere does. That's what you need to do here.” After defeating Rickie Fowler and Jamie Lovemark in a playoff at the 2009 Frys.com Open (his last TOUR victory), Matteson knows what to expect from crowds that will likely be pulling for Stricker and Johnson on Sunday. He says he’s comfortable not being the guy the majority of the crowd is rooting for down the stretch on Sunday. And he’s comfortable with the two players who are expected to be receiving most of the cheers. “(Stricker’s) a great guy to play golf with,” Matteson said. “I would rather be paired with him than not. If I had to pick two or three guys to get paired with, couldn't go wrong with Zach or Steve, even if you're just playing golf on a Saturday somewhere. They're the kind of guys you want to hang around with.” Matteson hopes to be hanging with them after the round with the champions’ trophy in hand.

By Fred Albers, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent SILVIS, Ill. --  Steve Stricker has a chance. A chance to win his fourth straight John Deere Classic but to do so he must improve his scoring on the first nine holes. Stricker has played the front nine in 3 under while he is a cumulative 12 under on the final nine holes this week. Compare Stricker’s score on the first nine holes that of Troy Matteson, who is 10 under on the front nine, and you can understand why Stricker must have a quicker start to his round Sunday. Green Speed: It did not take long for golfers to find out the speed of the greens had changed for the third round. Off line birdie putts went zooming by the cup on the first two holes because the greens were at least a foot faster on Saturday. Players made a quick adjustment, but there were some strange looks on the first two holes. Shoeless: Brian Harmon took off his shoes and socks and waded into the water hazard on the second hole. He had gone for the par five in two and his approach leaked to the left. Without the benefit of shoes or socks, Harmon chipped to within 12 feet but missed the birdie putt. He was disappointed with the par but also relieved he avoided any water moccasins which may have lurked in the hazard. Equipment repair: J.J. Henry had his pre-round practice routine interrupted by an equipment failure. He broke a shoelace. Henry had to hurry to the clubhouse for a new shoestring but did not fully complete his normal putting practice. It may have hurt Henry, who finished the round with 31 putts, his most strokes of the week. Final round: I think it’s one of the harder things to do in all of sports. Win a golf tournament when leading from start to finish. That’s what Troy Matteson will try to do on Sunday. He will have to overcome an awkward statistical trend to post the victory. Matteson is ranked 118th on TOUR with a fourth-round scoring average of 72. He is also 170th on TOUR in final-round putting average. Matteson takes an average of 30.33 putts in the final round. Momentum: Anyone who wins a golf tournament has some good fortune and Troy Matteson had his share of luck in the third round. He hold a 28 foot putt on the 10th green, then used a putter from off the green at the 13 ^th hole to chip in a 36 foot birdie. The biggest break may have come from the CBS blimp. When Matteson hit is drive into knee high grass on the 14th hole, the CBS camera was able to locate the ball from high above in the blimp. Stat pac: Matteson combined good fortune with good putting. For the week, he is second in strokes gained - putting. Matteson has holed 296 feet of putts during the tournament and has made 44 of 48 putts measuring 10 feet or less. Quick play: Billy Horschel got his work done quickly and efficiently Saturday morning. He played as a single and took 2 hours 40 minutes to polish off a 6 under 65 to move 10 under for the tournament. Horschel said he would have played quicker, but he scouted the hole locations for Sunday’s final round. Utility wood: Steve Stricker had 273 yards for his second shot into the par-5 17th and used a utility wood. The shot came up just short but Stricker still made birdie and credited the phenomenal distance to the hot weather. I credit the newfound strength to his training regimen of Wisconsin bratwurst. Fred Albers is a course reporter for SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio and is inside the ropes this week at the John Deere Classic. For more information on SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio, click here.

By Chris Dunham, PGATOUR.COM Zach Johnson held his ground while many were losing it on Saturday at the John Deere Classic. Johnson’s 5-under 66 matched leader Troy Matteson’s number and kept the eight-time PGA TOUR winner within four shots of the lead after 54 holes. “Today was good,” he said. “I mean, I think I hit it today as good as I have all week, if not better. Put myself in position to make a lot of birdies.” And a lot of birdies he did make -- seven to be exact -- as Johnson posted his 15th consecutive round in the 60s at TPC Deere Run. Starting four back on Sunday won’t change Johnson’s approach. With two top-three finishes in the last three years here, why would he want to change? “I'm not one that can overpower a golf course,” Johnson said. “(This position) can change the approach of guys that can overpower places. I really can't, so I have to play really solid boring golf. I like that.” The John Deere Classic has always had a special place in Zach Johnson’s heart. Raised less than 100 miles from the course in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Johnson has played in the last 11 editions of this event, making it his most-played event on TOUR. He’s known to refer to the John Deere Classic as his “fifth major.” He’s done a little bit of everything in this event, from missing the cut while on the Web.com Tour to a runner-up finish in 2009 during Steve Stricker’s first victory run. Johnson even sits on the tournament’s board of directors. He’s still searching for that elusive victory, though. “It would be very special to win this week because of where I sit on the board and what this tournament's done for me in the past,” he said. “A lot of people said they want me to win and ‘you're going to win’ and that sort of thing. A lot of John Deere board members have really encouraged me and pushed me. I would assume they would be happy about it.”

The final round of the John Deere Classic will begin Sunday much like Saturday’s third round. Troy Matteson’s name is atop the leaderboard and Steve Stricker, in pursuit of a four-peat, is three shots back. There are two key differences, however. One, the pressure is greater on a PGA TOUR Sunday. And two, Matteson will be paired with the three-time champion on Sunday. Six players were between Matteson and Stricker on the leaderboard after 36 holes but the congestion cleared up on Saturday as the aforementioned two were the only players in the final four pairings to shoot better than 2 under. Matteson started quickly, with two birdies in his first three holes, and added five more before the end of his round that resulted in a 5-under 66. Stricker birdied the first hole but couldn’t get much else going before making four consecutive birdies late in his round of 66. Both players bogeyed the 18th. Entering Sunday four shots back and playing in the penultimate grouping will be Zach Johnson and Brian Harman. Johnson, an eight-time PGA TOUR winner grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, less than 100 miles from the course. Harman, a rookie ranked No. 97 in the FedExCup standings, is in search of his first victory -- and first top-10 finish -- on TOUR. In what promises to be an interesting Sunday at TPC Deere Run, 22 other golfers will enter Sunday’s final round at 10 under or better.

Troy Matteson is 18 under and playing the 17th with a three-shot lead at the John Deere Classic, but Saturday's stories are the guys gathering behind him on the leaderboard. Three-time John Deere Classic champion Steve Stricker birdied four consecutive holes before a closing bogey dropped him back to 15 under. He's alone in second place at the moment. Iowa native Zach Johnson is in the clubhouse at 14 under following his third-round 66 that featured seven birdies. Also moving inside the top 5 today was 2006 John Deere Classic champion John Senden, who has quietly moved into the picture at 13 under. Senden hasn't had a bogey since his final hole in Round 1 but after playing his first eight holes in 4 under Saturday, he made 10 consecutive pars to close his round. Those three players may be the talk of the TOUR on Saturday night. Should Matteson go on to win Sunday, however, he will finally be able to steal the headlines for himself.

Stories of fading hopes for the "Stricker Slam" may have been a bit premature. Steve Stricker, searching for his fourth consecutive John Deere Classic victory, has four birdies on his back nine, three in a row from Nos. 14-16, to move to 15 under, just two shots behind leader Troy Matteson. He heads to the 569-yard par-5 17th tied for second place with Brian Harman. Stricker has birdied the 17th in each of the first two rounds. UPDATE: Stricker picked up a fourth consecutive birdie on No. 17 to move within one of the lead.

For the second time in three weeks, Billy Hurley III will be in the hunt on Sunday at a PGA TOUR event. The former Navy lieutenant and PGA TOUR rookie posted a 7-under 64 Saturday to reach 14 under, which currently has him tied for third at the John Deere Classic. Hurley tied for fourth at the AT&T National two weeks ago after a third-round 66 left him two back after 54 holes. Prior to that, his best finish in 17 starts this season was a tie for 32nd at the Valero Texas Open. Saturday's 64 is Hurley's lowest round in a PGA TOUR event. "I think you can certainly compare my 5‑under on Saturday at Congressional with this (round)," Hurley said. "I mean, on a much harder golf course. So (this was my) lowest score, but maybe not the best round." Hurley needed just 23 putts Saturday as he moved to No. 3 in the field in strokes gained - putting. "I putted beautifully today," he said. "Even the putts that didn't go in I felt like I hit great putts. So hopefully we can just keep hitting it solid and get some good chances for tomorrow." If he putts that well Sunday, Hurley will be tough to beat.

Steve Stricker is 1 under through his first nine holes Saturday at the John Deere Classic. In pursuit of a rare four-peat at this event, Stricker has gone from three back to five behind leader Troy Matteson, who is 3 under through 7. Stricker’s current 11 under count leaves him tied for 11th on a leaderboard featuring 22 players at 10 under or better. There is good news for Stricker as he heads to the back nine. It’s been his stronger side this week. Through 2.5 rounds, Stricker is 3 under on the front nine and 8 under on the back nine.