DETROIT — Forget Amateur Hour. It's been Amateur Year on the PGA Tour.

Five months after Nick Dunlap became the first amateur to win on the PGA Tour since Phil Mickelson more than 30 years ago, another amateur, Luke Clanton, is making a bid to match the feat at the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club.

Clanton, 20, out of Florida State, shot the round of the day Saturday, a 7-under 65, to get himself into contention heading into Sunday's final round. He'll need to go low to catch the leaders, but these young guns seem to have little fear or, really, no fear.

"Me and Nick go way back, so it's awesome to see him do that," Clanton said Saturday. "I've seen him a couple times already and me and him have been friends for a while. It's cool, man.

"I think amateurs now, we're so good. I think a lot of guys have great chances of winning out here, and to be in contention with one day to go is pretty sweet."

Only eight men have won on the PGA Tour as amateurs, and the last time two different amateurs won on the PGA Tour in the same season was 1945, when Cary Middlecoff, Fred Haas and Frank Stranahan all did it.

Dunlap won The American Express in January, and took advantage of the two-year PGA Tour exemption by leaving Alabama and turning pro shortly after. He was the first amateur to win out here since Mickelson in Arizona in 1991.

Dunlap is in this week's field and a stroke back of Clanton, at 14 under, after a 67. Neal Shipley, low amateur at the Masters and U.S. Open who turned pro last week, has been in the mix in Detroit, as well.

"The game keeps getting younger," said Rickie Fowler, 35, the defending champion at the Rocket who moved himself up the leaderboard to 11 under with a 67 in the third round. "I would say when I turned pro and my rookie year on Tour, there wasn't as many young guys as there are now. I feel like guys are just getting better and better earlier, and there's more of them that are capable and ready to play. It's good to see, and it's fun to say. I can say 'kids' now, been out here a while, so it's good to see kids come out and have success and have some fun with it."

Clanton is one of two amateurs to make the cut at the Rocket, along with Ben James, out of the University of Virginia. Two others missed the cut, including 15-year-old Miles Russell, who was even par.

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