Packed leaderboard sets up Sunday drama at Wells Fargo Championship

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Max Homa said he was shaking when he stepped to Quail Hollow’s first tee Saturday afternoon. He was playing with Charlotte’s adopted son, one of the biggest names in golf, on his birthday. The crowd serenaded Rory McIlroy on the first tee, while Homa just stood and watched. “I felt like a sideshow out there,â€� he said. On Sunday, he’ll be the center of attention. Homa will play in the Wells Fargo Championship’s final group with Jason Dufner. Both players are atop the leaderboard after fighting out of the depths of a deep slump. They share the lead with a cancer survivor, Joel Dahmen. The trio is tied at 11-under 202. Pat Perez is one shot back, and several big names are still close enough to cause concern. McIlroy, the man whose record at Quail Hollow is unmatched, is two back. The reigning FedExCup champion, Justin Rose, is three behind. Paul Casey is at 7 under, while Sergio Garcia, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reed are among the names who are five back. Sunday nerves aren’t some overblown storyline. They’re very real. But the co-leaders have all been steeled by hardship. Dufner is a major champion who has struggled to break par this year. The Wells Fargo is his ninth event of 2019. He was 27 over par in the first eight. He made it to Sunday just once. And he didn’t finish under par in a single event before this week. He is 188th in the FedExCup standings. He has five PGA TOUR victories, including the 2013 PGA Championship, but hasn’t won since the 2017 Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. That experience will be invaluable come Sunday, though. “I felt good out there and I expect to feel good tomorrow,â€� Dufner said. He has converted three of his seven 54-hole leads into victory. Dahmen and Homa are in this position for the first time. The two first-timers have taken different paths to get here. Homa won the NCAA individual title in his senior year at Cal and was a contemporary of Justin Thomas. They played on the same Walker Cup team and both played their first PGA TOUR event as a pro at the 2013 Safeway Open. Homa finished ninth. Thomas missed the 54-hole cut. Dahmen, meanwhile, fought testicular cancer in the midst of a five-year stint on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada. Homa and Thomas only needed one season to graduate from the Web.com Tour. They were both PGA TOUR rookies in 2015, but their careers went different directions. Thomas has become a FedExCup champion and major winner, while Homa has bounced between the PGA TOUR and Web.com Tour. Homa fell for the lie that he had to get substantially better to have a long PGA TOUR career. His driver became a liability, though. Related: Tee times | Dufner, Homa prove there’s light at the end of the tunnel | Dahmen proves he can handle the pressure | Watch PGA TOUR LIVE: 8:30 a.m. ET Two years ago, he made less than $20,000 on the PGA TOUR. He made just two cuts in 17 starts and was 61 over par for the season. This is his third crack at the TOUR. Reminding himself of his past success has helped him regain his confidence. Those previous victories, even if they were at lower levels, have proven to him that he can handle the Sunday pressure. He’s a two-time winner on the Web.com Tour. “I’m nervous all morning and I get the club in my hand and it’s just the same thing,â€� Homa said. “I feel very comfortable when I’m playing good and I think that’s it. My brain clicked in and I piped it off No. 1, hit a great 8-iron.â€� Like Homa, Dahmen is in his third season on TOUR. He took a different path, though. At 31, he’s three years older than Homa. Dahmen’s cancer diagnosis has given him a different perspective. “I’ve known life and death, and this isn’t it,â€� he said earlier this week. Just like Homa gained valuable experience playing Saturday with McIlroy, Dahmen learned from a third-round pairing with one of golf’s superstars. He played with Tiger Woods in the third round of last year’s Quicken Loans National, shooting a 69 to Woods’ 68. Dahmen was 3 over par on his first five holes Saturday, but was 4 under the rest of the way. He eagled the par-4 eighth and made three back-nine birdies. Dahmen has been the first-round leader in three of his past five starts. Sundays are a different story, though. “I can’t wait to wake up,â€� Dahmen said. “I might not sleep very well tonight, probably can’t sleep in, but I mean, I love it. This is competing against the best. I mean, that leaderboard is pretty stacked, so I’m excited.â€�

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