Russell Henley's chanes of getting his first career win just got better thanks to a 45-footer he jarred for birdie on the 14th hole to get to 20 under and three shots clear of his closest competitor.

The birdie was Henley's 22nd of the week and has the rookie in good position to win in his first start.

Most of Henley's dominance this week has come on the par 4s. He's made 17 birdies on them and no bogeys. Going 50 straight holes without a bogey certainly helped, too.

Now can Henley hold on? The way he's played so far, it looks like it.

After his first bogey in 50 holes, Russell Henley didn't waste any time getting a stroke back.

On the par-5 ninth, Henley reached the green in two then two-putted from 35 feet for birdie.

One hole later, Henley made another birdie. His drive came up just short of the green on the 351-yard par 4 and he pitched up to 5 feet before making the putt.

With seven holes to go, Henley, a rookie, now leads by two over Scott Langley and Tim Clark. Charles Howell III is another stroke back at 16 under.

One of the reasons Russell Henley is in the lead: He hadn't made a bogey since the 11th hole of the first round -- until now.

Henley just bogeyed the par-4 eighth, where he missed the green long on his approach, left his third 10 feet short of the hole and missed the putt.

It was Henley's first bogey in 50 holes.

The upside for Henley? He still leads, but not by much with Charles Howell III one shot back after turning in 3 under, and Pat Perez two back after also making the turn in 3 under.

Scott Langley, who started the day in a tie with Henley, is also 15 under as is Tim Clark.

Five holes in and Russell Henley is still 1 under on the day and still in the lead at Waialae, where fellow rookie Scott Langley trails by two and three others by four.

Among those three? Pat Perez, Tim Clark and Charles Howell III.

Howell has the best resume of that group in this event, having twice finished second in 2012 and 2007. He was also fifth in 2010, fourth in 2009, third in 2005 and fourth in 2002.

Matt Kuchar is another stroke back at 13 under, while five players are 12 under.

The final group of rookies Russell Henley and Scott Langley are on the course at Waialae Country Club, where Henley has pulled ahead after a birdie on the opening hole.

Henley stuck his approach to inside 3 feet on the par-4 first to set up the easy putt.

Langley, meanwhile, missed the green long and right, failed to reach the putting surface on his next shot and eventually made bogey to drop two back.

Tim Clark is another stroke back at 15 under, while Pat Perez and Charles Howell III are 13 under.

The leaders will tee off at 5:20 p.m. ET at Waialae Country Club. (Stan Badz/Getty Images)

The final round of the Sony Open in Hawaii is under way (click here for live scores), where Russell Henley and Scott Langley share the lead at 17 under.

Henley and Langley won't tee off for another couple of hours, but can canyone catch them in the meantime? Will one of the rookies hang on for the win? Or will Tim Clark, Charles Howell III, or someone else catch them?

Let us know what you think and share your thoughts on the final round below.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

Some numbers to ponder ... The last rookie to win on the PGA TOUR was Charlie Beljan, who won the last event of the 2012 season. The last to do so in his PGA TOUR debut was Garrett Willis in 2001. The last to win in a first start as an official member of the PGA TOUR were Henrik Stenson and Garrett Willis, in 2007 and 2001, respectively. The last to record his first victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii: Jerry Kelly in 2001.

In other words, there's some pretty good history behind Russell Henley and Scott Langley, whom share the lead at 17 under entering Sunday's final round. They're also three shots clear of the field.

Now for a few nuggets on the leaders and why they each stand a good chance of hanging on ...

Earlier this week, Langley tied the tournament record for lowest first-round score with a 62. He also leads the field in most birdies and strokes gained-putting. mark for the lowest first-round score, an 8-under-par 62. Scott Simpson set the mark in 1991 and Brian Claar each matched it in 1997.

Henley, meanwhile, set a tournament record for the best first 36-hole start when he entered the weekend 14 under. And just two years ago, Henley became the second-ever amateur to win on the Web.com Tour when he captured the 2011 Stadion Classic at UGA one week before graduating from the University of Georgia, where he won seven times.

In other words, they're well prepared. It's just a matter of if anyone can catch them.