Hoey fights through ups and downs, sets sights on strong Rocket Classic finish

MANILA, Philippines — Rico Hoey weathered another roller-coaster day of missed fairways, missed putts and squandered opportunities but still produced a gritty two-under 68 to keep his hopes for a strong finish alive in the Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club on Saturday (Sunday Manila time).

Despite a round that could have yielded a much lower score, the ICTSI-backed Filipino-American climbed into a tie for 17th at nine-under 201, six shots behind new leader Davis Riley and only two strokes outside the Top 5 entering the final round of the $10-million PGA Tour event.

With momentum finally on his side after another under-par effort, Hoey now has a realistic chance to cap an encouraging week with one of the best finishes of his young PGA Tour career.

Riley seized control with a brilliant seven-under 63, punctuating his charge with back-to-back birdies to finish at 195. Michael Brennan fired a 64 to reach 196, but a missed nine-foot par putt on the 18th left him one stroke behind after briefly drawing level with Riley at 15-under overall.

Rasmus Hojgaard electrified the field with a spectacular 61 to join Chris Kirk (66), Rickie Fowler (67) and Cameron Young (68) in a four-way tie for third at 198, setting the stage for a wide-open and potentially dramatic Sunday shootout.

While the leaders traded birdies, Hoey quietly made his own move despite another erratic display that reflected both the firepower and inconsistency that have defined much of his Tour campaign.

Starting well behind the frontrunners after 36 holes, the long-hitting University of Southern California product pieced together a three-under 32 on the front nine, mixing five birdies with two bogeys before adding three more birdies against two bogeys on the inward side for his second 68 in three rounds.

The score, however, told only part of the story.

Hoey repeatedly put himself in position to go much lower but was repeatedly denied by wayward drives and costly missed birdie opportunities. Even so, he continued to bounce back from every mistake, displaying the resilience that has kept him in contention throughout the week.

He opened with a missed 10-foot birdie chance on the first before an errant drive and missed green led to bogey on the second. Unfazed, Hoey responded with three consecutive birdies, knocking in a four-footer on No. 3, taking advantage of the par-5 fourth with a routine two-putt birdie, then draining a 13-footer on the par-3 fifth.

Another wayward tee shot resulted in bogey on the sixth, but he answered with a superb 36-foot birdie putt on the seventh. A missed five-footer on the eighth briefly stalled his momentum before he birdied the par-3 ninth from 19 feet to complete an eventful outward journey.

The back nine followed a similar pattern.

After pars on Nos. 10 and 11, another missed fairway cost him a bogey on the 12th. He quickly recovered by firing a superb approach from the rough to within two feet on the 13th for birdie, then escaped with another birdie on the par-5 No. 14 after driving into the native area and converting a 20-foot putt.

A costly three-putt miscue on the par-3 15th again threatened to derail his round, but Hoey responded with a 10-foot birdie on the next. He nearly finished even stronger, only to miss a 12-foot birdie chance on the 17th before narrowly missing a 25-footer on the last that stopped just inches short.

It was another reminder of how close Hoey has been all week to putting together a truly low round.

Still, the 30-year-old continued to move in the right direction and heads into Sunday's finale with renewed confidence and plenty to play for. Although six shots behind Riley, Hoey remains within striking distance of a Top-5 finish and, with one hot round, could yet produce the kind of closing charge that has eluded him for much of the season.

Hoey's best finish this season is a tie for 17th at the Charles Schwab Challenge, but his best career finish is runner-up at the 2025 Bank of Utah Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour, where Brennan emerged victorious by four strokes.

This week, Hoey has once again shown he has the game to compete with the Tour's best. The challenge now is to put together one more complete round when it matters most and turn another promising performance into a breakthrough result.