Australia’s Adam Scott forges tie with Brooks Koepka at PGA Championship

The Latest on the PGA Championship, golf’s final major of the year (all times local – CST):

4:50 p.m.

Adam Scott has ripped off five birdies in a seven-hole stretch to get to 14 under, matching Brooks Koepka atop the leaderboard with five holes to play in the PGA Championship.

Scott made bogey at the first but has been flawless ever since as the former Masters champion tries to win for the first time since 2016. Scott recently returned to his old swing coach — his brother-in-law, actually — and has said he feels better about his game.

Tiger Woods, meanwhile, dropped a shot at the par-4 14th when he lipped out his par putt. That put him two shots back with three holes to play.

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4:35 p.m.

So much for that delay interrupting Tiger Woods’ momentum.

After waiting for the grounds crew to repair the cup damaged by Gary Woodland’s approach to the par-4 12th, Woods calmly rolled in another birdie putt. Then, he dropped a marvelous tee shot to the par-3 13th to about 10 feet and rolled that in for another birdie.

That got the four-time PGA champion to 13 under, one shot off the lead of Brooks Koepka.

Adam Scott is another shot back while Justin Thomas is three back at 11 under.

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4:15 p.m.

Tiger Woods had his momentum interrupted on the par-4 12th when Gary Woodland’s approach shot hit the hole on the fly and bounced away, leaving a dent in the side of the cup.

Woods was staring down another birdie putt that would get him to 12 under, two shots back of leader Brooks Koepka. But he had to wait while the grounds crew came out to fix the hole.

Meanwhile, Justin Thomas missed a short par putt — the second 6-footer he’s missed during the final round — to fall another shot back. Adam Scott has three birdies in four holes and is 12 under.

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3:50 p.m.

Brooks Koepka has birdied three straight holes to wrap up his front nine, giving him a two-shot lead over Justin Thomas and red-hot Thomas Pieters down the stretch at the PGA Championship.

Koepka, the U.S. Open champion, had four birdies and a pair of bogeys on the front nine.

Pieters doesn’t have a bogey yet. The 26-year-old from Antwerp, Belgium, had a couple birdies on the front but heated up on the back. He birdied the short par-4 11th and now has ripped off three straight birdies, including one at the 248-yard par-3 16th — one of the toughest holes on the course.

Pieters has three wins on the European Tour but none on the PGA Tour.

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3:35 p.m.

Tiger Woods in his Sunday red is creating some more major championship magic at Bellerive.

After failing to hit a fairway in regulation on the front nine, the four-time PGA Championship winner needed only 10 putts in an extraordinary display of scrambling. Woods made the turn at 11 under for the championship, two shots behind third-round leader Brooks Koepka.

Then he drilled his tee shot at the 10th right down the middle.

Justin Thomas isn’t giving in, either. He made birdie at the 11th to reach 12 under.

Adam Scott is playing with Koepka and isn’t going away. The Australian is tied with Woods at 11 under as he tries to win for the first time in two years.

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3:20 p.m.

It’s a crowded leaderboard in the final round of the PGA Championship, where Brooks Koepka still leads at 12 under but reigning champion Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods are giving chase.

Thomas followed a three-putt bogey with a birdie to start the back nine, getting him within a shot of the lead. Woods is among those at 10 under, even though he played the entire front side at Bellerive without finding a fairway in regulation.

Also at 10 under: Adam Scott and Thomas Pieters, who is 4 under for his round.

Five others are at 9 under for the tournament, including British Open winner Francesco Molinari, Jason Day and big-hitting Jon Rahm, who wasn’t been able to get much going on Sunday.

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3:10 p.m.

Justin Thomas three-putted from 12 feet at the par-4 ninth, dropping him out of a tie for the lead with Brooks Koepka as he heads to the back nine at the PGA Championship.

Tiger Woods is trying desperately to stay in contention. He has yet to hit a fairway off the tee on the front nine, and he remains 9 under — two shots off the lead.

Already in the clubhouse are Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Tyrrell Hatton, whose rounds of 64 on Sunday left them 9 under for the championship. Now, the two of them have a long wait to see how they finish.

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2:45 p.m.

Justin Thomas has three birdies on his front nine at the PGA Championship to move within one of leader Brooks Koepka, who missed a short par putt at the difficult par-4 fourth at Bellerive.

Tiger Woods has scrambled for back-to-back pars after wayward tee shots during one of the toughest three-hole stretches on the course. He remains at 10 under, two shots back.

Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Tyrrell Hatton have joined the group at 9 under. They’re playing together and are both 6 under on the day with one hole to play.

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2:10 p.m.

Tiger Woods is on the prowl at the PGA Championship.

After lipping out his birdie putt at the first, Woods rolled in a 10-footer for birdie at the second, then nearly holed out his approach to the par-3 third for a tap-in birdie.

That got Woods to 10 under for the championship, two back of third-round leader Brooks Koepka.

Woods is trying to win his fifth PGA and 15th major championship, and it would be his first since the 2008 U.S. Open. It also would be the first time Woods has won a major playing in any group other than the last in the final round.

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1:55 p.m.

The leaders have teed off at the PGA Championship, where Brooks Koepka entered the final round with a two-shot lead over Adam Scott and some of golf’s biggest names close behind.

Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods lipped out early birdie chances but are within sight of the lead, while Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Tyrrell Hatton have the hot rounds going to reach 8-under par.

Both of them are 5 under for their rounds.

Zach Johnson and Kevin Na are 4 under on their day. Jordan Spieth is 3 under, leaving him 7 under for the championship as he tries to complete the career grand slam.

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1:35 p.m.

Justin Thomas is off to a good start as he tries to defend his PGA Championship.

The winner last weekend at Firestone, Thomas and playing partner Shane Lowry each birdied the par-4 first at Bellerive. That got Thomas to 9 under for the championship, three back of leader Brooks Koepka, with more birdie holes coming up.

The last player to win back-to-back PGAs was Tiger Woods in 2006 and ’07.

Koepka is schedule to tee off with Adam Scott in the final group at 1:55 p.m.

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1:15 p.m.

Webb Simpson has two early birdies to get to 8 under at the PGA Championship, and that should essentially lock up his spot on the Ryder Cup team if he hadn’t done it already.

Simpson was in the eighth and final spot to guarantee being part of captain Jim Furyk’s team next month in France. Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson, who were right behind him, failed to make the cut this weekend at Bellerive.

One intriguing situation involves Bubba Watson, who was fifth in the standings. He shot 78 on Friday and missed the cut while Xander Schauffele, who was 11th in the standings, was 6 under and in contention for a top-10 finish heading into the final round Sunday.

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12:30 p.m.

Get ready for some fun at the par-4 11th in the final round of the PGA Championship.

Kerry Haigh of the PGA moved the tees to the forward box on Sunday, which means it plays 298 yards and offers an enticing risk-reward chance. There is a hazard to the right and a pond guards the green, while a steep embankment packed with fans skirts the green to the left.

The early split of layups and guys going for the green off the tee was about 50-50.

Marc Leishman went for the green and plunked a fan. Tommy Fleetwood also sent fans scattering when he drove it left. So did Rory McIlroy in the next group.

“It’s very accessible for every player in the field if they want to go for it,” Haigh said. “It will obviously depend on if you’re going after the leader or you’re leading.”

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11:55 a.m.

Ben Kern is making the most of his first PGA Championship experience.

The lone club professional to make the cut this week among the 20 that tee it up, Kern is 1 under for his final round and 4 under for the championship. That means the former Kansas State star and the club pro at Diamondback Golf Club in Abilene, Texas, could be headed to a nice payday.

Or rather, another nice payday.

Just before coming to Bellerive, Kern shot 14 under to win the Texas State Open. His third-round 62 showed that he was hitting the ball well, as did the $42,500 winner’s check he took him.

“I’ve gotten so much response and enthusiasm and texts, just a lot of support,” Kern said. “It’s been a lot of fun going through that and replying to that and seeing everybody.”

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11:25 a.m.

The first two groups are done with their final rounds at the PGA Championship, and yes, there are good scoring opportunities available.

Chris Stroud and Cameron Smith each teed off early and buzzed through Bellerive at 4-under 66.

Tournament officials placed the tee box on the par-4 11th hole way up, at 294 yards, to make it drivable. Hideki Matsuyama drove to 18 feet and made the putt for eagle. He’s at 3 under on his round with four holes left.

The leaders tee off Sunday afternoon.

Tiger Woods will try to make up a four-shot lead on Brooks Koepka, who is trying to become the fifth player in history to win the U.S. Open and PGA in the same year.

Adam Scott starts the day two shots behind Koepka.

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9:55 a.m.

The final round of the final major of the year is buzzing with possibilities.

Brooks Koepka has a two-shot lead at the PGA Championship as he tries to become only the fifth player in history to win the U.S. Open and PGA Championship in the same year. Right behind is Adam Scott, who suddenly has a chance to turn his worst season into a great one.

Of the 11 players within four shots of the lead at Bellerive, the spotlight shines brightest on Tiger Woods. Coming off two straight rounds of 66, he is four shots behind with only five players in front of him.

Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm are in range of their first major.

Also at stake: It is the last day to qualify for the U.S. Ryder Cup team.