Even a spot atop the leaderboard at Riviera can’t mask Rory McIlroy‘s frustration, and a 52nd-ranked rival, Jacob Bridgeman, is the reason why. With the latter outshining him on the back-9 in the penultimate round, McIlroy wants revenge. His frustration and skill would help him do so on Sunday, hopefully.

“Yeah, a little frustrated, but at the same time, I was hitting good shots, and I just felt like every putt I left myself was more of a defensive putt rather than something you could have a go at,” McIlroy told the media. “All of a sudden, you get one that you think you can have a bit of a run at, and then you hit it a little bit too hard. I found the greens really, really difficult today.”

“I wish I were a few shots closer to Jacob, but it looks like I’ll be in the final group. At least I’ll be able to keep an eye on him and maybe get off to a fast start and put a little bit of pressure on him,” the Northern Irishman noted.

🤔 golf trivia

This Should Be an Easy One, Right?

01/10

How Many Kiwi Golfers Have Won a Major?

3451

Oops, bogey!

But don’t worry, there’s still the back 9 to prove your high golf IQ

PLAY GOLF TRIVIA

Bridgeman changed the game on the back nine on Saturday. He went birdie-eagle-birdie between holes 10 and 12 to go from a two-shot lead to five clear. He then birdied one of his three holes, the par-5 17th, to end up six shots ahead of McIlroy after shooting a 7-under 64. Bridgeman had only played Riviera for the first time on Wednesday due to rain, yet he adapted quickly.

On the contrary, McIlroy’s back nine was mainly a silent affair. He bogeyed the 10th, birdied the 11th, and saved par on the remaining holes. He came to the penultimate round, carding blazing rounds of 66 and 65 with just one bogey across 36 holes. This was a complete contrast to last week at Pebble Beach, where he made three double bogeys and a triple bogey.

The duo will tee off at 2:20 PM ET and battle the difficult Poa annua greens of Riviera; this grass type gets bumpy and unpredictable with foot traffic and late-afternoon growth. McIlroy entered Riviera ranked 99th in Strokes Gained: Putting at -0.098 this season, despite elite ball-striking numbers, which explains exactly why these fast greens have limited his scoring chances.

For Bridgeman, his goal remains to get his inaugural win. Playing with McIlroy won’t be a distracting experience for him, as he’s already played with him once before. The two were paired up in the FedExCup Playoffs last season, so he knows what to expect.

“I think if it was my first time [with McIlroy], maybe it would be a little unsettling, but now I’m not worried about it,” Jacob Bridgeman said.

Beyond the greens, Rory McIlroy has had another frustration brewing all week, and this one is about the course itself. Before this year’s $20 million event, the par-3 fourth hole was extended from 230 yards to 273 yards. And for the golfer, this was “a horrible change.” He argued that adding length without changing the apron around the green does not make it a better hole.

Notably, the talking points this week have not been limited to putts and course changes. Rory McIlroy’s shot selection on the 6th hole drew an unexpected reaction from a fellow tour pro.

Rory McIlroy’s wedge call draws pushback

On the first day, on the 201-yard 6th hole, McIlroy found himself roughly 90 feet from the cup with a bunker between his ball and the hole. Sitting on the green, McIlroy executed a high-skill wedge shot, chipping over the bunker from the putting surface to just a few feet from the hole.

PGA Tour pro Michael Kim pushed back on social media. Kim argued that chipping off a green is not difficult because the grass is too short to trap the club the way fairway grass does. He acknowledged the fear of taking a divot but stood firm in his view.

The numbers back up Kim’s point when it comes to Rory McIlroy’s ability to handle that shot. McIlroy’s scrambling percentage in 2025 sat at 58.04%, and he had already made three birdies in that same round before reaching the 6th. For a player at his level, it was well within range.