Berger
carded nine birdies, including six in eight holes around the turn as he
vaulted to the top of the leaderboard on 15 under, while Russell Knox
earned a place in Sunday's final pairing with a classy 64.
But the
Scot will have ground to make up on last season's PGA Tour Rookie of
the Year, who birdied the sixth, eighth and ninth to cap an outward 32
before reeling off three in a row from the 11th.
Berger,
who lifted his maiden title at the FedEx St Jude Classic in June,
picked up another shot at 15 and holed a 22-foot putt for his ninth
birdie of the day at 17, although he missed out on another at the last
when he 12-footer came up short.
"I've shot better than 62, but I
guess it doesn't matter unless it's on the PGA Tour," said the
23-year-old, who suffered a shoulder injury during his win in Memphis,
strained it at the US Open and pulled out of the WGC-Bridgestone
Invitational at the end of June after hitting his opening tee shot.
Berger,
who returned to action at last week's PGA Championship, also revealed
that US Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III has been in regular contact to
check on his progress, and a debut in the contest at Hazeltine is now
his prime target.
"I haven't looked at the rankings since I won
when I moved to 12th," he added. "Captain Love has texted me a few times
because I wanted to kind of keep him informed on where I'm at. That's
my biggest goal this year. I mean, I want to play on the Ryder Cup.
Russell Knox continued to bolster his Ryder Cup hopes as he earned a share of second
"My
dad (Jay Berger) played in the Davis Cup, so I think that would be
pretty cool to have father and son play Davis Cup and Ryder Cup. So
that's one of my goals, and if it's not this year then I'll look toward
the next one, but I know I'll be great in that environment and I'll be
tough to beat whoever Mr. Clarke put up against me." Knox, who is
also chasing a Ryder Cup debut, was first into the clubhouse on 12 under
after his seven-birdie round, which included birdies at the opening
three holes.
Further
gains at 13 and 15 were followed by his only blemish of the day at the
par-three 16th, where he bunkered his tee shot and missed a four-foot
putt for par, but he atoned by converting a solid approach to 10 feet at
the last.
"I played beautifully and I had loads of chances," he
said. "Obviously I made some, which was great. I missed a couple, but to
finish with a birdie left a good taste in my mouth."
Knox
shares third with Russell Henley and Tyrone Van Aswegen, who both came
home in 30 to post 65s, while Patrick Rodgers is a further two strokes
off the lead after a 66.
England's Paul Casey carded five birdies
and just one bogey in a 66 that lifted him to nine under alongside
Brooks Koepka, who continued to defy an ankle injury as he hit back from
an early mistake to fire seven birdies in a 64.
But
defending champion Bubba Watson is seven off the pace after mixing six
birdies with four bogeys in an erratic 68, a score matched by his US
Olympic team-mate Patrick Reed.
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