Akshay Bhatia seized control of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Saturday, moving into a two-shot lead over defending champion Rory McIlroy heading into the final round. Bhatia, an American, shot a 68 despite battling blustery conditions in California. He started the day tied for the lead with Japanese golfer Ryo Hisatsune but capitalized on a strong start, recording six birdies in his first seven holes.

His advantage briefly stretched to five shots before a bogey at the 17th and a missed birdie putt on the final hole dropped him back to two shots ahead at 19 under par. Fellow American Collin Morikawa, who shot a 10-under-par 62, climbed into second place at 17 under, moving closer to his first victory in almost two and a half years. Morikawa's round included an eagle at the last hole, joining Jake Knapp (66) and Austrian Sepp Straka (67) in a three-way tie for second.

Defending champion McIlroy, who started the day six shots back, fell further behind despite opening with two birdies, shooting a three-over-par 72 and trailing by ten strokes after a poor 7th hole and a double bogey at the last.