England’s Brandon Robinson-Thompson fired a stunning third-round 62 to move three shots clear ahead of the final round of the Turkish Airlines Open.
Robinson-Thompson’s round matched the Regnum Carya course record and saw him reach 14 under for the week, three clear of Spain’s Jorge Campillo, China’s Haotong Li and South African Robin Williams.
Starting the day five shots off the lead, Robinson Thompson burst out of the blocks with three birdies in his first five holes, all of them from inside six feet.
Another fine approach to six feet at the 9th saw him turn in 30 and he chipped in for eagle at the 12th.
The HotelPlanner Tour graduate, who has already finished third in Qatar and posted top-10 finishes in Bahrain and South Africa this season, then birdied three of the last four holes, with the highlight a 22-foot putt at the 16th.
“I’ve just got notified of that [the course record] and I’m a bit bummed I didn’t break it,” said the 32-year-old.
“I’m super excited to have a nice round and the scary part was I probably could have had a few more but beggars can’t be choosers.
“I’m here with my wife, we’re staying in a beautiful hotel, the course is amazing.
“It’s hard not to enjoy yourself this week – the facilities are so good. I’m here with my wife, its such an incredible place, if you’re not having a good time this week win, lose or draw, there’s something wrong.”
Campillo, Li and Williams carded rounds of 66, 68 and 67 respectively, with overnight leader Martin Couvra tied for fifth on 10 under alongside Sweden’s Mikael Lindberg and English pair Matthew Jordan and Jordan Smith.
“Hopefully I can keep playing this solid and make a few putts,” said Campillo. “Hopefully we have a nice weather and it will be a nice day for you guys too.
“It’s so hard to win a golf tournament, you have to beat 155 guys, so it’s a loser’s game, really. I will give it a try, and hopefully I can win. Obviously, it’s not going to be easy.”
Li hopes that his birdie on the 18th can ignite his final-round challenge.
“The birdie [on the last] kind of helped me to create a lot of momentum for tomorrow,” said the four-time DP World Tour winner. “The game was just as solid as yesterday as well.
“As soon as I saw a leaderboard on the 12th green, I thought, two-putt here and I am one shot behind and it’s OK. And then I had a three-putt there and bogeyed the next hole.”
Williams is hoping that the time is right to claim his maiden DP World Tour title.
“That’s all you can ask for is to have a chance on the back nine [on Sunday] and if it it’s your time, it’s your time,” he said.
“But look, I’ve played well this week, I’ve made myself proud. I’ve had fun with my dad as well, which is the main thing, so I’m just going to go out there and enjoy tomorrow.”
– Report from DP World Tour website
Photo: Octavio Passos/Getty Images
