Aberg rallies with late birdies for 2-shot lead in Scottish Open

NORTH BERWICK, Scotland (AP) — Ludvig Aberg overcame a pair of bogeys early on the back nine with three late birdies that carried him to a 5-under 65 Saturday at the Scottish Open, slightly dampening the enthusiasm of a gallery fully behind local star Robert MacIntyre.

“Not the most stress-free golf, but it was again a good score,” Aberg said. “I'm pleased with the way I hung in there and finished it out.”

The final round before most of the field heads to Royal Troon for the British Open was packed with possibilities, starting with MacIntyre.

Scotland's best player, already with a PGA Tour victory this year in the Canadian Open, surged to a two-shot lead at one point and heard his name chanted along the way. He closed with a tough bogey and still shot 63, putting him in the final group with Aberg.

“I've not been shy in saying it: The Scottish Open is the one I want,” MacIntyre said. "It’s not going to change tomorrow. I’m in that position. I’ve been doing good things. I’ve been playing well, not just this week but for the previous eight weeks I feel like my game has been in good shape. Tomorrow, I’ve just got to control me.

“And if I do that well, then I’m going to be in with a chance.”

MacIntyre looked like a winner in the Scottish Open a year ago until Rory McIlroy birdied the last hole with a 2-iron from 201 yards into a harsh wind off the Firth of Forth to deny him.

Now he's back, trying to block out the hype and the cheers, knowing what it would mean.

“All I can do is hit the golf ball as well as I can and accept the outcome,” MacIntyre said.

Tougher than the expectations is chasing down Aberg, the Swedish star with the flawless swing who was at his best in a light rain to at least give himself some separation.

Aberg was at 17-under 193 as he goes for his first victory of the year, and third in a career that began only 13 months ago after leaving Texas Tech as the top player in college golf.

Adam Scott played with MacIntyre and had a 64, leaving him three shots behind in pursuit of his first victory in more than four years. Collin Morikawa and Sahith Theegala each had a 66 and were four behind. Theegala bogeyed his last two holes after briefly sharing the lead.

McIlroy was still in the game, despite his putter going cold down the stretch for the third straight day. He had to settle for a 67. That left him five shots behind Aberg, a player he lobbied to have in the Ryder Cup last year.

Aberg came back to the field with a bogey on the 11th and then a three-putt bogey on the 12th when he missed a 30-inch putt. That was the last of his big mistakes. He had three birdies and two par saves the rest of the way.

But the crowd was all about Bob.

MacIntyre, the lefty from the northwest coastal town of Oban, got them into it early with a five-hole stretch he played in 5 under, including a drive on the 329-yard fifth hole to 40 feet for eagle.

Scott has played all over the world with home favorites — including a group one year at the Japan Open with Hideki Matsuyama and Ryo Ishikawa — and this felt like a joy ride.

“Bob's playing great and he's the hero,” Scott said. “Playing golf in Scotland is fantastic — love it my whole career — but playing with Bob today was really special. Trying to hang on to his coattails while he was running hot was good fun.”

Scott did his part to hang with him with three straight birdies in the middle of the back nine to give himself a good chance, and build some momentum going into the British Open next week at Royal Troon.

Antoine Rozner holed out from the seventh fairway for eagle that helped him to a 68 and in the group at 13-under par, important because the Frenchman is not yet in the British Open.

The leading three players not already exempt will get into the final major. Maximilian Kieffer of Germany boosted his chances with a 64 that left him at 10 under and in a tie for 11th.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Mackenzie Hughes on the 1st hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Antoine Rozner on the 3rd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Sahith Theegala on the 2nd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Rory McIlroy on the 3rd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Rory McIlroy on the 2nd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Robert MacIntyre chips from the rough on the 17th hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Robert MacIntyre reacts on the 17th hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Robert MacIntyre on the 18th hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Ludvig Aberg on the 2nd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

Ludvig Aberg on the 3nd hole during day three of the Genesis Scottish Open 2024 at The Renaissance Club, North Berwick, Saturday July 13, 2024. (Malcolm Mackenzie/PA via AP)

GENEVA (AP) — Two former Olympic champions are in the race to be the next IOC president. So is a prince of a Middle East kingdom and the son of a former president. The global leaders of cycling, gymnastics and skiing also are in play.

The International Olympic Committee published a list Monday of seven would-be candidates who are set to run for election in March to succeed outgoing president Thomas Bach for the next eight years.

Just one woman, IOC executive board member Kirsty Coventry from Zimbabwe, entered the contest to lead an organization that has had only male presidents in its 130-year history. Eight of those presidents were from Europe and one from the United States.

Coventry and Sebastian Coe are two-time gold medalists in swimming and running, respectively. Prince Feisal al Hussein of Jordan is also on the IOC board.

Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. of Spain is one of the four IOC vice presidents, whose father was president for 21 years until 2001.

David Lappartient is the president of cycling’s governing body, Morinari Watanabe leads gymnastics, and Johan Eliasch is president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Coe is the president of track’s World Athletics.

All seven met a deadline of Sunday to send a letter of intent to Bach, who must leave the post next year after reaching the maximum 12 years in office. Bach declined at the Paris Olympics last month to seek to change IOC rules in order to stay in office longer.

A formal candidate list should be confirmed in January, three months before the March 18-21 election meeting in Greece, near the site of Ancient Olympia.

Only IOC members are eligible to stand as candidates, with votes cast by the rest of the 111-strong membership of the Olympic body.

The IOC is one of the most exclusive clubs in world sports. Its members are drawn from European and Middle East royalty, leaders of international sports bodies, former and current Olympic athletes, politicians and diplomats plus industrialists, including some billionaires like Eliasch.

It makes for one of the most discreet and quirky election campaigns in world sports, with members prevented from publicly endorsing their pick.

Campaign limits on the candidates include a block on publishing videos, organizing public meetings and taking part in public debates. The IOC will organize a closed-door meeting for candidates to address voters in January in its home city Lausanne, Switzerland.

The IOC top job ideally calls for deep knowledge of managing sports, understanding athletes’ needs and nimble skills in global politics.

The president oversees an organization that earns billions of dollars in revenue from broadcasting and sponsor deals for the Olympic Games and employs hundreds of staff in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Coe has been widely considered the most qualified candidate. A two-time Olympic champion in the 1,500-meters, he was later an elected lawmaker in Britain in the 1990s, led the 2012 London Olympics organizing committee and has presided at World Athletics for nine years.

However, he has potential legal hurdles regarding his ability to serve a full eight-year mandate. The IOC has an age limit of 70 for members, while Coe will be 68 on election day. The rules allow for a special exemption to remain for four more years, but that would mean a six-year presidency unless those limits are changed.

Coventry, who turned 41 Monday, also has government experience as the appointed sports minister in Zimbabwe.

The only woman ever to stand as an IOC presidential candidate was Anita DeFrantz, a former Olympic rower from the United States. She was eliminated in the first round of voting in a five-candidate election in 2001, which was won by Jacques Rogge.

Lappartient also is president of France's national Olympic body and has carried strong momentum from the Paris Summer Games. He leads a French Alps project that was picked to host the 2030 Winter Games and was picked by Bach to oversee a long-term project sealed in Paris that will see Saudi Arabia hosting the Esports Olympic Games through 2035.

Eliasch is perhaps the most surprising candidate after being elected as an IOC member in Paris less than two months ago. The Swedish-British owner of the Head sportswear brand got 17 “no” votes, a notably high number in Olympic politics.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

FILE - International Olympic Committee (IOC) Vice President Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. speaks during a press conference at the headquarters of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee in Beijing, Tuesday, Sept. 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

FILE - IOC member and former swimmer Kirsty Coventry smiles on the arrival for a press conference after the executive board meeting of the IOC, at the Olympic House, in Lausanne, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020. (Laurent Gillieron/Keystone via AP, File)

FILE - World Athletics President Sebastian Coe holds a press conference at the conclusion of the World Athletics meeting at the Italian National Olympic Committee, headquarters in Rome, Nov. 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File)

FILE - IOC President Thomas Bach addresses the audience during the 2024 Summer Olympics closing ceremony at the Stade de France, Aug. 11, 2024, in Saint-Denis, France. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)