Shane Lowry shot a one-under-par third-round 69 at the Texas Children's Houston Open to sit in a tie for 34rd place.
The Offaly man picked up a birdie on the third hole but gave the shot back on the next.
He parred his way to the 13th before a second bogey but a strong finish, with birdies on the 15th and 16th, left him well off the pace of leader Gary Woodland.
Woodland shot five-under-par 65 to maintain the lead through three rounds as he seeks his first victory in nearly seven years in Houston.
Woodland is at 18 under despite his highest score of the tournament.
Hard-charging Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark posted the best round of the day with a 63, so he's one stroke back going into Sunday's final round at Memorial Park Golf Course
Woodland had four birdies on a six-hole stretch on the backside to maintain the lead. The last three of those birdies came with putts inside of 7 feet.
Hojgaard also was four under on that same six-hole stretch, with a 14-foot putt his longest birdie among those holes.
Both golfers had pars on 18.
Defending champion Min Woo Lee of Australia shot 67 to sit at 12 under, joined by Michael Thorbjornsen (66).
Lee took a bunker shot on one knee on17, rolling the ball close enough for a birdie putt.
Sam Stevens (67) and Australia's Jason Day (68) are at 11 under.
First-round leader Paul Waring of England moved back into contention by shooting 66. He's at 10 under with Sahith Theegala (66) and Canada's Sudarshan Yellamaraju (65).
Additional reporting: Reuters
