NORTON, Mass. -- Russell Henley doesn't get into contention all that often, but he is tough to beat when he's anywhere near the lead.
Rory McIlroy seems to be there all the time.
They were among a host of contenders Sunday at the Deutsche Bank Championship, setting up a second consecutive final day free-for-all in the FedEx Cup playoffs.
The difference at the TPC Boston is the presence of McIlroy so high on the leaderboard.
Henley shot a 6-under 65 to take a one-shot lead over Billy Horschel going into a Labor Day finish.
Ten players were separated by four shots. Six of them already have won on the PGA Tour this season.
And one of them -- McIlroy -- has won the biggest events.
"I've been in this position quite a lot recently," McIlroy said. "So I know how it's going to feel."
McIlroy shot a 7-under 64 to get within two shots of the lead. He played with Chris Kirk, who also shot a 64.
Henley was at 12-under 201. He will play in the final group with Horschel, who birdied his last three holes for a 67.
Henley has been an unpredictable performer in his two seasons on the PGA Tour. He won the Sony Open in his first PGA Tour event last year, and never seriously contended again. He won the Honda Classic in March in a four-man playoff that included McIlroy, and since then has missed eight cuts and has only two finishes in the top 20.
"I think I'm just still figuring it all out," Henley said.
Jason Day, who started Sunday tied with Ryan Palmer, reached 12 under with a short birdie putt on the 13th hole. But he missed a short par putt on the 14th and hooked his tee shot into high grass and had to pitch out, leading to another bogey on the 15th. Day also failed to birdie the par-5 18th, shot 69 and is two shots back.
Palmer shot 71 to fall four shots behind.
McIlroy won the British Open, a World Golf Championship and the PGA Championship to assert himself at No. 1 in the world. He was never a factor last week at The Barclays after starting with a 74.
Shooting 64 didn't surprise him.
"It feels like it's what I'm supposed to do," McIlroy said. "It's my job to go out there and shoot good scores. I'm not getting too excited about it. I've got a lot of work to do tomorrow if I want to win this tournament."
CHAMPIONS
Couples has course record
CALGARY, Alberta -- Fred Couples won the Champions Tour's Shaw Charity Classic on Sunday, chipping in for eagle for a course-record 9-under 61 and beating Billy Andrade with a tap-in birdie on the first hole of a playoff.
Couples, 54, also eagled the par-5 11th and had five birdies in his bogey-free round at Canyon Meadows. Andrade closed with a 62, making a short eagle putt on the par-5 18th to match Couples at 15-under 195.
Couples also won the Toshiba Classic in March in California and has 11 victories on the 50-and-over tour. Couples won 15 times on the PGA Tour, including a victory in the 1992 Masters.
WEB.COM
Cauley secures card
FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- Bud Cauley won the Hotel Fitness Championship on Sunday to regain his PGA Tour card, earning $180,000 in the Web.com Tour Finals opener.
Cauley, a 24-year-old former Alabama player, closed with a 7-under 65 at Sycamore Hills for a one-stroke victory over Colt Knost. Cauley birdied five of the first six holes and finished at 20-under 268.
Cauley was 143rd in the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup standings, forcing him to play the Web.com Tour Finals for the second consecutive year. Nos. 126-200 in the FedEx Cup and Nos. 26-75 on the Web.com Tour's regular-season money list are playing for 25 PGA Tour cards based on earnings in the four-event series.
David Lingmerth (Arkansas Razorbacks) tied for fourth at 14 under and earned $41,333. Scott Gardiner (Farmington) was tied for 12th at 11 under and won $19,600. Tag Ridings (Razorbacks) had a 4-over 74 Sunday and finished in a tie for 25th for $7,298.
Lingmerth, who finished out of the top 125 on the PGA money list at 134, is in good position to regain his card with three weeks remaining in the Web.com finals. The No. 25 earner in last year's finals, with a purse structure similar to this year, came in at $44,271.
The top 25 on the Web.com money list earned PGA Tour cards last week. They are competing against each other for PGA Tour priority, with regular-season earnings counting in their totals.
LPGA
Ernst wins in playoff
Austin Ernst won the LPGA Tour's Portland Classic on Sunday with a par on the first hole of a playoff against South Korea's I.K. Kim.
It was the first professional victory for Ernst, 22, who shot a 5-under 67 in the final round to get to 14 under at Columbia Edgewater. Kim, the first- and second-round leader, carded a 68.
South Korean's So Yeon Ryu and Chella Choi tied for third at 12 under. Ryu, last week's Canadian Women's Open winner, shot 70, while Choi had a 68.
Sports on 09/01/2014