No one had a better day moving in The Charles Schwab Challenge than Eric Cole. But now comes the hard part.
Cole, the 37-year-old PGA Tour veteran, shot a seven-under 63 Saturday at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, to take a one-stroke lead into Sunday’s final round. His 63 was two shots better than the next-best round Saturday (Nico Echavarria’s 65) and four better than a handful of others who shot 67s.
This week marks his 120th career start; he is still looking for that elusive first win.
“It’s not going to be an easy day tomorrow, I know that from my experience,” Cole said Saturday. “I know it’s going to be tough, but that’s why I practice a lot and that’s why I try to do everything the way I do, so I’m as prepared as possible for whatever tomorrow brings.”
Cole started day five in the lead, but burned through the classic country club well before the leaders came out. He was four under on the front and added birdies at 10, 11 and 14 before his only bogey at 15. He returned with a birdie at 16 and split the last two to take the clubhouse lead; a few hours later it was good for the 54 hole bullet.
“Everything worked out well,” he said. “I got off to a really good start. I knew it was going to be a tougher course, tougher conditions. Getting that start and realizing how much tougher the course was today was great. Then, yeah, I just kept trying to hit one good shot after another and make birdies when you can.”
Cole had the runner-up and third-place finishes in his career (two each) although all were in 2023. The closest he has come to a win was losing the 2023 Honda Classic in a playoff.
Cole sits at 12 under, one ahead of Ryan Gerard, who bogeyed the final two holes on Saturday to shoot a 68 and move into sole second place.
“That’s going to be big for tomorrow,” Gerard said of his finish. “Every shot really counts; any time you get a chance to take advantage of an opportunity, you’ve got to take advantage of it. And this course is going to be tough, so you’ve got to go out there with the right attitude and keep putting it in front of you and keep hitting it in the right spots.”
JJ Spaun and Mac Meissner are tied at 10 under. Spaun, the 2025 US Open champion, most recently won a month ago at the Valero Texas Open.
There are also seven players tied for seven under, a group that includes Justin Thomas, Gary Woodland, Ludvig Aberg, Akshay Bhatia and Brian Harman.
“I think (Sunday) will play the same as today if it’s windy,” Cole said. “No rain so it’s not going to get any softer. So just get ready for another tough day of lots of good quality shots.”
