THIRD-ROUND LEADERBOARD

WICHITA, Kan.– Erik Compton used a third-round 3-under 67 at Crestview Country Club to take the 54-hole lead at the Wichita Open Supporting Wichita’s Youth.

Despite a bogey on his opening hole, Compton rebounded with birdies on Nos. 2, 3, 4 and 9 to make the turn at 12-under for the week. He kept his momentum going with pars on Nos. 10-13 and tallied another birdie at the par-5 14th. A late bogey on the par-3 17th moved him back to 12-under for the tournament, one stroke clear of the field.

“I drove the ball very well for the first day, but the last couple days, I scrambled,” said Compton, who hit 11 of 18 greens on Saturday. “I just made some really great up-and-downs. I feel like I was chipping from behind the hole a lot. I’m just really happy with my position.”

In 13 events this season, Compton has recorded five top-25s and is currently ranked 63rd in The 25. Earlier this year at The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club, Compton held a share of the third-round lead and went on to finish T25.

“I think that everyone feels pressure and you have to embrace the pressure,” he said. “For me, with my body, it’s a race against me instead of the field. I’ve been doing this a long time and sometimes it’s harder than others and I know tomorrow will be a battle. I look forward to it.”

The 39-year-old has spent time on both the PGA TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour. He earned his first Korn Ferry Tour title at the 2011 El Bosque Mexico Championship. The former University of Georgia standout last played a full season on the PGA TOUR in 2016, and has his sights set on his return.

“To be honest, tomorrow is going to be a shootout; you’ve got a lot of great players there at the top of the leaderboard,” he said. “I think the strategy tomorrow is to pretty much do the same thing I did today. I need to go out and attack pins when I have opportunities and see if the body holds up.”

A pack of players including Chad Ramey, Kevin Dougherty, Henrik Norlander and Bryan Bigley sit just one-stroke off the lead at 11-under 199.

Ramey, who began the day four strokes off the lead, caught fire on his opening nine with birdies on Nos. 2 – 5. After pars on Nos. 6-8, he tallied another birdie on the ninth to reach 11-under for the week. Ramey carded one birdie against one bogey on his back nine to finish T2.

“It was one of those things where everything was going well,” Ramey said. “I didn’t hit it real close, but it wasn’t like I was making bombs. Just making some 8-foot or 10-foot putts. I chipped in one that was straight up the hill. Everything was just working.”

Ramey is currently ranked 107th in The 25 and has made seven cuts in 16 starts. The 26-year-old has two top-25s so far this season. With players beginning to secure PGA TOUR cards, the Mississippi State University alum needs a solid finish to get back in the race for The 25.

“It means everything,” Ramey said on being in contention. “That’s why I’m here. I’m just looking forward to it and I’ll see where tomorrow goes.”

SATURDAY NOTES

* Saturday's weather: Partly cloudy and breezy, high of 87. Winds S 12-18 mph, with gusts up to 25 mph.

* This week's purse is $625,000, with $112,500 going to the champion. The winner will also earn 500 points in the Korn Ferry Tour points system.

*Erik Compton holds the 54-hole lead/co-lead for the third time in his career and has not converted the previous two instances into a victory (2011 Panama Championship/T4, 2019 The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club/T25)

*Entering the week, Bryan Bigley (-11, T2) made just two cuts in 12 starts, with a scoring average of 73.88 through 26 rounds. His best finish of the year came at The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club, where he finished 65th after rounds of 80-86 on the weekend.

*After taking a share of the 36-hole lead, Scottie Scheffler (T6) made two double bogeys on Saturday en route to an even-par 70. Seeking his second victory of the season, the University of Texas alum sits two shots off the pace.

* Sebastian Cappelen (-10, T6) carded a 7-under 63 on Saturday, mixing eight birdies and a bogey. The University of Arkansas product has finished inside the top 10 in four of his past five starts at this event, including a victory at the 2014 Wichita Open in his first career start. He leads the all-time Wichita Open money list with $169,438 in career earnings.

* Playing in his rookie season, Danny Walker (T6) tied his best round of the season with a 5-under 65. The 22-year-old missed five of his last six cuts entering the week.

*Among the three Monday qualifiers that made the cut, MJ Daffue leads the group, sitting T27 through 54 holes. A top-25 finish will earn him a start at next week’s Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank.

* The par-4 sixth hole (495 yards) ranked as the toughest hole on the course on Saturday with a scoring average of 4.257

* The par-5 14th hole (501 yards) ranked as the easiest hole on Saturday. The hole played to an average of 4.324 and yielded six eagles and 46 birdies.

*Crestview Country Club Scoring Average: