I think as long as you have your lift arms on and the corresponding hitch pins and sway chains you can remove the centering bar (part #4 in the diagram shown previously). I have problems with mine also but it's not that the bolt breaks, more that the centering bar bends. You might also want to consider installing collars instead of the centering bar like shown here to eliminate the problems associated with it:
After looking for a picture of the three point assembled, I see that that length is needed. As above you might be better off using a bearing lock ring on each side.