ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. — With 18 holes left in the FedExCup Fall, the stakes at The RSM Classic are at an all-time high. After three rounds in Sea Island, Finland's Sami Valimaki leads at 19-under, with 12 players within four shots of his lead.

As the top-100 bubble looms, here are the five players with the most at stake to keep an eye on heading into Sunday.

1. Lee Hodges

Two years ago, Lee Hodges was in the midst of his most successful season. He had earned his maiden TOUR victory at the 3M Open and earned a spot in the FedExCup Playoffs. This year, Hodges entered The RSM Classic in a tenuous position at No. 122 in the FedExCup and needing at minimum a three-way T4 to secure his TOUR card. It's been the culmination of a season of struggles, including nine of 24 missed cuts, until this week, where the 30-year-old has carded three sub-66 rounds at Sea Island to sit at 15-under heading into Sunday.

"When you're shooting as high as you feel like you can shoot every day, you lose a little bit of confidence," the University of Alabama alum said after Round 3. "Man, I just figured I've played (at Sea Island) so many times through college and junior golf and stuff, I was like what a great course just to kind of let it rip this week."

"I'm from Ardmore, Alabama, and I'm playing on the PGA TOUR for four years and have a win. Like no one ever would have given me that when I was 10 years old. I want to obviously keep it going, I'd love to add more to my resume, but it's been an awesome ride so far and I think — I don't think it's over yet, but I'm excited to see where it goes."

2. Zac Blair

The FedExCup bubble pressure that envelops The RSM Classic is an environment all too familiar for Zac Blair. The Utah native has infamously been the odd man out twice, finishing at No. 126 in the 2017 and 2024 FedExCup standings, both years when 125 was the all-important status threshold.

"Yeah, it sucks," said the 35-year-old Blair on Saturday at The RSM Classic, reflecting on his close calls.

Blair missed the cut in Sea Island in 2024, but this year, he's in contention at 16-under after back-to-back 64s, just three shots back heading into the final round. However, at No. 154 in the FedExCup, the only outcome that will earn him status on Sunday is a win. He's coming off a successful run of fall events: a T20 at the Bank of Utah Championship, Monday qualifying and making the cut at the World Wide Technology Championship and a T9 at last week's Butterfield Bermuda Championship.

"I know that I just need to go have my best round of the year or the season tomorrow," said Blair. "It's pretty easy when that's kind of all that you can do."

3. Patrick Rodgers

In 2018, Patrick Rodgers lost The RSM Classic in a playoff against Charles Howell III. A promising Stanford alum who had broken Tiger Woods' scoring record and tied his victory record at the school, his expectations of greatness never materialised into a victory. Rodgers is tied for the second-most top-10s (29) without a win on TOUR.

Six years later, he's in a position to win at Sea Island again. He'll be playing in the final group on Sunday after backing up a scorching second-round 62 with a third-round 68 to sit at 17-under.

"I'm trying to bring the best version of myself to the golf course each and every day," said Rodgers after his round. "Each day feels like you're asked a different question of you. ... So it's just kind of having the wisdom to know what to do in each situation and I'm excited for a new one tomorrow."

Rodgers entered the week safely within the top 100 at No. 63 and is now also projected into the Aon Next 10, which would guarantee him starts in the first two Signature Events of the year. "As a competitor, I want to play against the best players," he said. "That's what I'm here for, that's the objective and hopefully I can add a trophy along the way."

4. Doug Ghim

With only 100 TOUR cards up for grabs in the FedExCup Fall, players who have been a staple on TOUR now find themselves in a precarious position as the fall draws to a close. One of them is Doug Ghim, the Texas Longhorn who was No. 125 entering the week. Ghim needs at least a solo-fourth to have a chance to lock up his TOUR card. He's currently five shots back of the lead and hoping to break out of the chasing pack.

"Obviously when you're in the situation a lot of us are going into tomorrow, you can feel sorry for yourself, you can feel frustrated," said Ghim after his third-round 67. "You can be like ... it sucks that it's only 100 cards this year, or it's so windy here or whatever. You know, I can only control what I can control. I know that I'm tough enough."

Ghim tied the Seaside Course record on Thursday with a 10-under 60. He has one more round to make another splash.

5. John Pak

John Pak entered the PGA TOUR with a lot of promise. The 2021 PGA TOUR University No. 1 and Florida State standout earned his TOUR card on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour. However, his first season on TOUR yielded disappointing results: 13 missed cuts in 25 starts and two top-25s. At No. 168 in the FedExCup, like Blair, he needs a win to secure full 2026 status. The 26-year-old New Jersey native tied for the low round of the day with a 64 on Saturday at the Seaside Course, and is also working with a new putting coach, Eric Dietrich.

"I've got a nothing-to-lose mentality this week," said Pak. "I haven't had the best year, but yeah it's some of the best ball-striking I've had in a very long time. So just a couple more putts to fall and I think we can have a good day tomorrow.

Let the putts fall.