CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One swing was all Scottie Scheffler needed to send Quail Hollow into delirium Saturday, to briefly rattle Bryson DeChambeau, and to give this PGA Championship the star power it had been lacking.

Scheffler stood on the 14th tee, 304 yards from the hole, thinking it might come up a little short with the wind gusting right-to-left against his preferred fade. It was nearly perfect, the ball climbing onto the green and settling just inside 3 feet away.

The eagle put him atop the leaderboard for good and started a closing stretch that was nothing short of a clinic, 5 under over the last five holes. It sent him to a 6-under 65 and a three-shot lead as Scheffler closed in on a third major championship.

“I executed the shot,” Scheffler said. “Did I execute it thinking I hit it 2 feet or whatever it was? I mean, there’s a little bit of luck involved in that when you’re at 300 yards. But overall, I executed how I wanted to.”

He did that a lot in the final hour and left so many contenders feeling helpless against the No. 1 player in the world.

Jon Rahm made a run with three straight birdies. Bryson DeChambeau briefly had the lead until his tee shot on the par-3 17th found the water. He was trying to salvage a bogey putt from 25 feet away when the loudest cheer from across the lake by the 14th green made him back off.

Scheffler, of course.

The world’s No. 1 player turned a three-shot deficit into a three-shot lead over Alex Noren (66), who only last week returned from seven months away with a hamstring injury and now gets his first opportunity to play in the final group of a major.

Former Cal standout Max Homa fell out of contention after shooting a 5-over 76. Homa, who is ranked 78th in the world, started the day tied with Scheffler in fifth place.

Homa had a double-bogey and four bogeys and is now at even-par 213, 11 strokes back.

Rahm was among those five shots behind. DeChambeau was six back. They thought they would be closer until Scheffler wasn’t satisfied with taking the lead. He wanted a proper finish, and delivered it with two birdies, each packed with a little more emotion.

It ended with an 8-iron from the seam of a divot to just inside 10 feet for birdie on the 18th, and Scheffler pumped his fist accompanied by, “(Expletive) yeah, baby!”

“I typically don’t show much emotion. I don’t know how much I showed there. I don’t really think about what I’m doing,” Scheffler said. “I just felt like I hit two really good shots in there ... and was able to just take advantage of the opportunity.

“Wherever the emotion came from, felt like an important part of the round to finish off the round the right way.”

DeChambeau, the U.S. Open champion who has been a major force at golf’s biggest events, briefly took the lead with a birdie on the par-5 15th. And then it all came undone.

He missed a 4-foot par putt on the 16th. He was stunned to see his ball find the water on the 17th that led to double bogey. He had to scramble for par on the 18th and a 69.

DeChambeau was three behind when he finished, six behind when Scheffler got done with his masterful performance.

“I’m behind the 8-ball now. I’ve got to get my guns a-blazing tomorrow,” he said.

The third round was delayed by morning storms, forcing a change in tee times to threesomes off both tees that didn’t start until shortly before noon. And then it became a game of musical chairs for the lead. Nine players had at least a share of the lead at one point.

One of them was Rahm, the two-time major champion and former No. 1 who has not seriously contended in the four majors he has played since joining LIV Golf.

“Hard to express how hungry I may be for a major, about as hungry as anybody can be in this situation,” Rahm said. He faces a five-shot deficit, but armed with growing confidence in his game.