Stricker, Kelly and Goosen by one from Harrington
Steve Stricker has a fan in fellow Wisconsin native Jerry Kelly.
"Any time I get to watch Steve's putting stroke for a round it makes me a better player," Kelly said after playing 18 holes with his longtime friend.
Stricker collected seven birdies, chipping in for one, and closed with an eagle at the 18th hole Sunday to shoot a six-under 65 and re-gain a share of the lead after three rounds of the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Retief Goosen carded a three-under 68 and Sean O'Hair closed with a birdie for a one-under 70 to join Stricker in the lead as the tournament headed for a Labor Day finish.
The three co-leaders were at 13-under 200.
Padraig Harrington shot a 67 to lead a three-way tie at 12-under 201 that included Kevin Na (66) and Scott Verplank (68).
Kelly (67) and Kevin Sutherland (69) were another stroke further back at 11- under 202.
Tiger Woods, after rallying to make the cut on Saturday, hit his first tee shot into the trees on Sunday and failed again to mount a charge as he remained frustrated by poor putting.
Woods feigned celebration when he made his first birdie of the third round at the par-four 15th, throwing his arms in the air after holing a six-footer. But he hit his next shot into the hazard at the short par-three 16th, only saving bogey after spinning his do-over from the drop zone to tap-in range.
The No. 1 player in the world needed an approach to a couple feet at the 18th for a closing birdie just to post 72. He was nine shots off the lead and out of contention at four-under 209.
Woods would lose his spot at the top of the playoff standings if Stricker wins on Monday.
Stricker, No. 2 in the standings for the FedEx Cup, combined with Kelly to make 13 birdies and an eagle on a breezy day at the TPC Boston. Kelly had a share of the lead around the turn, having an easier time on the suddenly-firm greens, but the momentum changed on the back nine.
Beginning with a chip-in birdie from in front of the 10th green, Stricker made a run to the top of the leaderboard that ended with his eagle at the par-five 18th, where he knocked his 236-yard second shot to five feet.
Seven total birdies and that closing eagle helped erase the few mistakes Stricker made in the third round, and the six-time tour winner was glad to have Kelly along for the ride.
"We fed off one another, and I just had a little bit stronger finish than he did. But he played great," said Stricker, who has won twice this season. "It was tough conditions out there with the wind, not really being able to get a handle on the direction at all today, especially on that back side. We were coming up short, going long. It was difficult, and the greens firmed up again today and made things a little bit more difficult trying to get them close to the holes."
As the first player to show up for a practice round on Monday, Goosen had no trouble adjusting to the new conditions. He made four birdies and a bogey, pulling even with Stricker on a 13-foot birdie putt at the 16th, and moved within 18 holes of getting his second win of the season.
Goosen, a seven-time tour winner and No. 17 in the playoff standings, missed a chance to take sole possession of the lead when he hit into a bunker and made par at the reachable 18th.
"I'm happy with the way I played today," said Goosen, who won the Transitions Championship earlier this season. "I hit the ball fairly solid off the tee, was never really in any trouble, and very happy with the round.
"It was a bit of a disappointing finish on the last hole, but nice to be up there, and looking forward to tomorrow."
O'Hair, who is 16th in the playoff standings, struggled with club selection and fell behind with two early bogeys after sharing the second-round lead with Jim Furyk. The 27-year-old rebounded admirably, however, by mixing four birdies and a bogey the rest of the way.
He finished with two birdies in his last three holes, closing with a six-foot birdie putt at the 18th to join Stricker and Goosen in the lead. O'Hair won his third tour title against a good field at this season's Quail Hollow Championship.
"It was an up-and-down day today," he said. "Started off not the way I wanted to, but ... hung in there and made a couple birdies late and turned a potentially bad round into an okay round. So it was nice to end off the round like that."
Following Monday's final round, the field will be cut from 100 players to 70 for the third playoff event, next week's BMW Championship.
