Tommy Fleetwood moved into Round 3 of the 2026 Truist Championship one stroke behind the lead after two straight 4-under rounds, and he had to wait for a 75-minute weather delay before teeing off at 8:50 a.m. ET on Saturday in Charlotte. The third round at Quail Hollow was pushed back for the second time in three days because of inclement weather in the area.
Sungjae Im held the lead at 9 under par after a 7-under opening round and a second round that was enough to stay in front, while Justin Thomas and Alex Fitzpatrick were two shots back entering the day and Rory McIlroy sat four strokes off the lead after a 4-under second round. With 22 players separated by six shots, the tournament remained crowded heading into a weekend that could keep shifting under the weather.
The delay mattered because the field had already dealt with a longer interruption earlier in the week, when the first round was pushed back more than 4 hours by heavy rain. That earlier storm also forced a change from pairs to split-tee threesomes, a reminder that the week before the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow is being shaped as much by the sky as by the scorecard. AccuWeather called for a high of 79 degrees in Charlotte, North Carolina, along with a 55% chance of rain and about a 10% chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon, with winds listed at 5-10 mph and gusts up to 18 mph.
Fleetwood’s position gives him a clear path into the final stretch, but the margin is thin enough that one bad hole could undo two days of steady scoring. The race is likely to stay compressed for as long as the weather holds, and the player who handles both the pressure and the forecast best may leave Charlotte with the title.
