Aphibarnrat leads 2-shot over Uihlein into final round in China

Thai golfer Kiradech Aphibarnrat took a slender two shot lead on Saturday into Round 4 of the Shenzhen International, following a third consecutive sub-70 round on the par-72 course at Genzon Golf Club.

It could have been a different story for the big Thai had it not been for a double bogey on the 17th hole followed by a bogey on the 18th.

Rubbing salt into the wound, his nearest competitor, overnight leader Peter Uihlein from the United States, finished off a disappointing day with a birdie on the 17th to close what had been a six-shot gap down to two.

Kiradech played aggressively throughout the round, notching up six birdies on the front nine followed by three on the back. But five dropped shots saw him finish the day at 4-under par and 12-under on aggregate.

Speaking after his round, the 25-year-old from Bangkok said, "I can say overall it's not a bad round. 4-under for the day, still two shots ahead. I started well with three straight birdies but struggled at the end. The last two holes I lost some concentration at the back and technically I made a mistake. I lost the focus on the short putt on 17 and that was the big turn."

Aphibarnrat has just one European Tour win to his name from Malaysia in 2013. Asked if the pressure was likely to get to him on Sunday, he added, "I don't think pressure will affect me tomorrow, and today, as well. After I led by six shots, I felt everything was in control. I have a lot of confidence coming to play this week.

"My ball-striking is good, concentrate and play my own game, which is very important for tomorrow. I know many players will try to catch me up. There's not a big gap between leader and second or third, but I will try to move and make their job tougher."

Uihlein wasn't able to repeat the form he has shown in the first two rounds, carding a 1-under par 71 in what was a disappointing day for the American.

Speaking after his round, the 25-year-old Uihlein said, "I just made too many sloppy bogeys. Four bogeys, a bit rough. Five birdies and missed a couple of pretty easy ones. Overall pretty good, given how sloppy it was."

Commenting on his playing partner's performance, he added, "He's playing fantastic all week, or at least today was pretty solid until 17. He does that quite a bit, so one of those things. I'll just try and keep with him and give him a good run tomorrow."

One shot further back at 9-under par following his 7-under low-score of the day, is Pablo Larrazabal. Two consecutive low scores have hauled the Spaniard back into contention following a disappointing first round.

Said Larrazabal: "The game was brilliant today. I missed two shots, the second shot on 17 and the second shot on 18. But I played very solid. I made 1-over par on the par 5s, and on this golf course, you have to score on the par 5s to go low. But I went the wrong way! We'll see how we finish. The golf course is playing easier than the other two days but still not that easy!"

Another player to make a charge up the leader board is 19-year-old Li Haotong from China. The player from Hunan province started the day at even-par but an equal low-score of 7-under par gives him a slender chance if he can repeat the same form on Sunday.

Playing his third consecutive round under the watchful eye of world No. 4 Bubba Watson, Li said, "Very exciting. Feel very comfortable today. So hopefully tomorrow, I'll play well. My long game was the same as the first two rounds, but I made some mistakes on the putting. Today I figured it out. So I changed my caddie and that helped me a lot. So, much better."

The same can't be said for the pre-tournament favourite Bubba Watson. The American had another day to forget, finishing tied in 58th place at 2-over par. Said Watson: "The key is having fun. Try not to get too mad at yourself when you hit a bad shot and just enjoy it. It's a different environment. This week is a different grass, different speed of the greens, a course I've never seen. So, it's tougher for me, and obviously he [Li] played it. He's been here before, and he's playing it nicely. So, that's the key."

Looking ahead to Round 4, he added, "Hopefully I play good and make some putts. I haven't made any putts this week so hopefully I can make a few putts and score a bit better." Endi