Staff WriterIf leaderboard leads were umbrellas, Calum Hill spent Saturday in a gale, holding on with both hands at the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship at Royal Golf Club. Three early bogeys threatened to turn a comfortable stroll into a wobble on a tightrope, yet Hill clung on, signed for a level-par 72, and still marched into Sunday two clear at 16-under.
He started the day four ahead of Freddy Schott, but golf has a special talent for rearranging the furniture when you least expect it. Hill’s opening jitters let Schott briefly sneak in front by the turn, the sort of twist that makes a tournament feel like it’s been written by someone who enjoys mischief.
Hill, though, found the calm in the chaos. Back-to-back birdies at 14 and 15 were the deep breaths, the steadying hands, the “right then, enough of that” moment. It wasn’t the glamorous kind of round that ends with your name trending—more the sturdy, practical kind that wins trophies when Sunday arrives with sharp elbows.
And if this week ends with Hill lifting the hardware, it would be his third DP World Tour title—earned not with fireworks, but with the kind of control that looks boring right up until everyone else starts leaking shots.
Schott’s front-nine sparkle, back-nine sting
For Schott, Saturday had the feel of two different films spliced together. He made four birdies on the front nine—youthful, fearless, all bright lights—then mixed a birdie with three dropped shots coming home to post a 70. Still, at 14-under, he remains very much in the plotline for a breakthrough DP World Tour win.
In other words: close enough to dream, close enough to feel every heartbeat.
Reed and Garcia bring the weekend heat
Behind the leading duo, the chase pack decided subtlety was overrated.
Patrick Reed produced a joint best round of the day, a 66 that hauled him to 12-under and into a share of third. Fresh off a win at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, Reed started like a man trying to catch a flight—four birdies in the first six holes—then added an eagle at the par-five 13th for good measure.
Alongside him in third is Grant Forrest, who fired a 67 built on six birdies and just one bogey—neat, tidy, and the kind of scorecard you’d happily frame.
And then there’s Sergio Garcia, who went on a little birdie binge—three in a row starting from the ninth—before dropping his only shot at 16 on the way to a 68. Garcia’s at 12-under too, and if he gets rolling on Sunday, you’ll want to keep one eye on the leaderboard and the other on the exits.
The packed middle and the Sunday squeeze
At 11-under sit Nacho Elvira and Jorge Campillo, joined by Mikael Lindberg and Ben Schmidt, with eight more players a shot further back in a tie for tenth. In short: plenty of traffic, plenty of volatility, and the kind of Sunday where one loose swing can turn a charge into a chase for respectability.
Which is exactly why the Bapco Energies Bahrain Championship feels primed for a proper finish—leaders under pressure, proven winners lurking, and enough contenders stacked behind them to make every par feel like it’s worth double.
Calum Hill: I actually felt like I played quite nicely, I just had a few errors in there and misjudged a couple of putts early on that put me behind a little bit. I managed to come back a little bit on the back nine and put myself in a good position for tomorrow. If at the start of the week you said I’d have a couple of shots going into Sunday, I’d be delighted.
I knew there were some chances coming on the back nine; the par fives are a chance, ten is a chance, but there were some really tough pins. Honestly, it was really tricky on and around the greens. Putting, the undulation, some of the flags were really difficult, slightly different wind direction; it didn’t feel like a day where, personally, I could shoot really low. Level par, I would’ve liked a bit better than that at the start of the day but I’m also very happy with where I am.
Today’s a great experience. It’s been a while since I’ve been at the top of a leaderboard and leading going into the weekend. Early on, I could feel the adrenaline going through my body. My arms, forearms and hands were a little – I don’t know how to explain it – like springy, so a couple of my putts early on were a little firm or misjudged.
I settled in after that sixth hole, felt a little bit better. The nice thing I like about today is that no matter how my body felt, my striking was still there. I still controlled the golf ball really well and hit it where I wanted to. I just need to work on the putting a little bit. However, in saying that, that is my greatest asset in my game, so I’m not too worried about it.
