Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee will take a one-shot lead into the final round of the BMW Masters, but Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey and Ian Poulter are all firmly in contention in Shanghai.
Jaidee began the day three shots behind Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard but carded a third round of 66 at Lake Malaren with seven birdies in his first 14 holes and a solitary bogey on the 18th.
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That left the 46-year-old former paratrooper on 15 under par, with Garcia, Bjerregaard and BMW PGA Championship winner Byeong Hun An on 14 under and Sweden’s Kristoffer Broberg a shot behind.
Stenson, Casey and Poulter are all on 12 under alongside American Ryder Cup star Patrick Reed and England’s Ross Fisher, who lost out in a three-man play-off 12 months ago.
Belgium’s Thomas Pieters and Australian Marcus Fraser are 11 under after rounds of 63 and 65 respectively, Fraser holing his approach to the 18th from 231 yards for an eagle two and a back nine of just 29 shots.
Par-Birdie-Birdie-Birdie. We’re impressed @ThongchaiJaidee. https://t.co/Jd2bFEkKVZ
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 14, 2015
Jaidee had quickly reduced his overnight deficit to one by matching Bjerregaard’s birdie on the second and adding two more on the third and fourth, before a birdie on the sixth took the seven-time European Tour winner into a share of the lead.
Another birdie on the eighth took Jaidee into the outright lead and although Bjerregaard responded by holing from 10 feet on the ninth to get back on level terms, Jaidee hit the front again with a birdie on the 12th.
Bjerregaard, who was runner-up to Justin Rose in the Hong Kong Open three weeks ago, and Jaidee traded birdies on the next two holes before Bjerregaard’s first bogey of the day on the 16th gave Jaidee a two-shot lead.
However, Jaidee dropped his first shot of the day on the last to leave the top 15 separated by just five shots heading into the final round.
