Steve Palmer's Tour Championship third-round preview, best bets, free golf tips

Where to watch

Sky Sports Mix, 6pm Saturday

Best bets

Xander Schauffele to win twoball
2pts 11-10 Betfred, Betfair, BoyleSports, Power

Hideki Matsuyama to win twoball
2pts Evens Betfair, Power

Story so far

Patrick Cantlay and Jon Rahm have detached themselves from the rest of the 30-runner Tour Championship field after 36 holes of action at East Lake, Georgia.

Cantlay, who started the event at ten under par under the handicap system which rewards players prominent in the FedEx Cup standings, has advanced his score to 17 under with rounds of 67 and 66. Rahm, six under par at the outset, has raced to 16 under with back-to-back 65s.

Cantlay and Rahm were contesting favouritism ante-post - and both could be backed at 4-1 for Tour Championship and FedEx Cup glory. At the halfway stage of the mega-bucks event, Cantlay has shortened to 6-4, while Rahm has become even-money market leader.

There is a five-shot gap between Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau, who started the tournament in third place and remains there. DeChambeau is a general 14-1 to hunt down the leading pair and lift the silverware.

Rahm's 130 total for two rounds makes him the lowest scorer of the week in a 72-hole competition not recognising the handicaps. Cantlay, Kevin Na and Billy Horschel are tied second-best, three behind Rahm.

Leaderboard
-17 Patrick Cantlay
-16 Jon Rahm
-11 Bryson DeChambeau
-10 Justin Thomas
-9 Tony Finau, Kevin Na, Viktor Hovland, Cameron Smith, Harris English
-8 Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Louis Oosthuizen

Best prices
Evens J Rahm, 6-4 P Cantlay, 14 B DeChambeau, 20 J Thomas, 40 R McIlroy, 50 V Hovland, T Finau, 60 C Smith, 66 H English, J Spieth, 100 bar

Third-round preview

The halfway stage of a tournament is too early in the piece to suggest that only two players can triumph - there is still scope for the chasing pack to set up a title tilt for Sunday - but Patrick Cantlay and Jon Rahm have obviously given their pursuers little margin for error.

Cantlay, who putted like a magician on his way to winning the BMW Championship last week, has looked more comfortable with his position at the head of affairs than he did when starting in the final first-round twoball at East Lake two years ago.

That said, following an epic six-hole BMW playoff against Bryson DeChambeau by defending a lead for 72 holes of the Tour Championship requires considerable mental fortitude. There must be every chance that Cantlay struggles to maintain a gallop over the weekend in a duel with the world number one.

Rahm, Racing Post Sport's headline pre-tournament selection at 4-1, can be fancied to get the job done. He started the event with a four-shot deficit - essentially a handicap of a shot a round - so he is ahead of schedule in getting to within one shot through two rounds. The Spaniard, who had a month off prior to the FedEx playoffs, seems bright and bouncy, ready to kick on over the closing two rounds and bank the $15m prize.

Perfect weather - warm with no wind - is forecast for the remainder of the tournament. Rory McIlroy and Harris English may be the springers from the pack to tuck in behind Rahm and Cantlay - but the leading duo should make enough birdies of their own to stay clear.

The final twoball is scheduled on the tee at 8.05pm UK and Ireland time. Twoball punters are pointed towards Xander Schauffele (6.55pm) and Hideki Matsuyama (5.55pm).

Schauffele, the 2017 East Lake champion, has an incredible course record and the Olympic golf medallist should have a weekend charge left in him. His playing partner Dustin Johnson, who can struggle for focus at the best of times, could mentally disappear over the weekend as his winning chance becomes ever more remote.

Matsuyama bounced back from a horror first round which featured a triple-bogey at the tenth with a Friday 65. The Masters champion appears much more likely to put together a respectable third round than Patrick Reed, who has only just returned from a nasty illness and could easily wilt over the second half of the tournament.

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