Harwood pulling away from the field in SC Amateur

Ho-hum. Another day, another 5-under-par 66.

Scores like that are the ticket to success in any golf tournament, and William Harwood has used that combination to open a commanding lead in the 87th South Carolina Amateur Championship at Dataw Island Club’s Cotton Dike Course.

A Columbian who will be a junior at Elon College this year, Harwood sizzled again Saturday. His third consecutive 66 gave him a total of 15- under-par 198 and a four-stroke edge over Sawyer Mills headed into Sunday’s final round.

His performance puts him in position to match or surpass the tournament record of 19 under par, set in 2015 by Keenan Huskey at Greenville Country Club’s Chanticleer course.

“Really impressive,” Biff Lathrop, executive director of the South Carolina Golf Association, said in evaluating Harwood’s first three rounds.

Mills, who lives in Easley and plays at Winthrop College, started the day two strokes behind Harwood and co-leader Jake Carter, shot 3-under 68 — and lost ground. At 202, he is the only player in the field with a realistic chance to catch Harwood.

Carter, an Aiken resident who plays at Florida State, began the third round tied with Harwood, but he struggled to a 4-over 75 Saturday and trails by nine strokes at 6-under 207. USC golfer Caleb Proveaux (Lexington) and Wofford player Jeremy Grab (Daniel Island) share fourth place at 5-under- 208.

In his two years at Elon, Harwood has one tournament victory, six top-10 finishes and has twice been named the Colonial Athletic Association’s golfer of the week. But the first three rounds in a tournament that dates to 1929 are special. He had made only three bogeys, one in each round, all week.

He parred his first five holes Saturday, then bogeyed No. 6 to fall to 9- under for the tournament. He countered with birdies on Nos. 7 and 8 to regain control, then sizzled on the back nine. With four birdies over the finishing holes, he moved to 15-under-par.

Mills also had four back-nine birdies to keep the leader in sight. He made birdie from the trees on No. 17 and closed his round with a birdie at the finishing hole.

The final round begins Sunday at 8 a.m. with a double-tee start. The final pairing of Harwood, Mills and Carter go off No. 1 at 9:50.