Ben James fired a 6-under-par 66 on Saturday to seize a four-shot lead heading into the final round of the World Wide Technology Championship in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
James, a 23-year-old rookie seeking his first PGA Tour triumph, birdied his first three holes of the third round on El Cardonal at Diamante to set the tone for the day. James, who led by one stroke through two rounds, posted seven birdies and one bogey to move to 21-under 195 for the tournament.
Ryan Gerard recorded a bogey-free 65 to climb into second place at 17 under. Chris Kirk (65) and Denny McCarthy (67) are another shot back.
Paul Peterson (66), Keith Mitchell (67), Mexico’s Alvaro Ortiz (66) and Japan’s Kensei Hirata (67) share fifth place at 15-under 201.
Michael Kim recorded 10 birdies — five on the back nine and five on the front nine — against one bogey at the par-4 No. 5 to produce the day’s best round with a 63. That catapulted Kim 53 spots in the standings into a share of ninth place at 14-under 202.