Neither of the remaining two Australians at the US PGA Tour's season-opening Frys.com Open in California could make a third-round impression as American Brendan Steele retained his lead on Saturday.
Steele will head into the final round on Sunday with a one-shot advantage after carding a 69 at Silverado Country Club in Napa, with compatriots Andrew Loupe and Kevin Na in hot pursuit.
Aaron Baddeley (71) is 11 strokes behind Steele, tied for 61st, while Stuart Appleby (72) is another shot further back.
The pair are the only two Aussies in the tournament after eight of their countrymen - Cameron Smith, John Senden, Matt Jones, Steven Bowditch, Jarrod Lyle, Robert Allenby, Rhein Gibson and Geoff Ogilvy - missed the cut.
Rory McIlroy is at six-under in a tie for 39th.
Steele missed a chance to build a bigger lead.
As one player after another was piling up birdies on the closing three-hole stretch - eagle opportunities on each hole - Steele had to settle for three pars.
Loupe had five straight birdies early in his round and four straight birdies late for a 63. Na played the closing stretch with an eagle and a birdie for a 64.
The title is wide open going into the final round with 16 players separated by only four shots.
"It's frustrating, because I thought I hit some good shots and good putts," Steele said. "It happens."
A pair of PGA Tour rookies were among the eight players two shots behind at 12-under.
Emiliano Grillo of Argentina, coming off a win in the Web.com Tour Championship two weeks ago, went eagle-birdie-par for a 65. Harold Varner III played that stretch in one-over, having to scramble for a par on the 17th and missing the 18th green long with a wedge to make bogey. He shot 69.
Grillo drove near the 17th green and nearly took out Rory McIlroy, who was still playing the hole. Grillo was under the impression the group had left.
And if he had hit the four-time major champion?
"Would have put me out of my misery," McIlroy said.
Justin Rose, who along with McIlroy is at the Frys.com Open because of an eight-man exhibition he played in Turkey three years ago, used that closing stretch to make a pair of birdies for a 68 and get within two shots.
Others at 12-under were Jason Bohn (64), Kyle Reifers (65), Graham DeLaet (69), Will Wilcox (69) and Jhonattan Vegas (69).
Justin Thomas had a 69 and was three shot behind.
The 54-hole cut knocked out nine players, so the final round will be played in twosomes from one tee.
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