Renewed hopes for a ticket to Brit Open

QUEENSLANDER Andrew Dodt held a share of the lead going into the final round of the Scottish Open overnight.

Dodt was tied with Ian Poulter and Callum Shinkwin at nine-under par after the third round at Dundonald, with the trio two shots clear of Englishman Andrew Sullivan.

But only five shots separated the top 17 players after a difficult day in which driving wind and rain made for extremely testing conditions.

Dodt sat in pole position to claim one of the three British Open places up for grabs for non-exempt players finishing in the top 10, but playing would require a change of plans.

The 31-year-old and his wife Ashleigh have a five-day holiday booked in New York, starting tomorrow.

“My wife only flew in from Sydney this morning but I’ll be quite happy to cancel the holiday for a spot in the Open, my first major,” Dodt said.

Three months after thinking he had lost his PGA Tour card, Poulter was on course for a first victory since 2012 after surviving a “brutal” day.

“The 12th was as tough as I’ve seen in terms of wind and rain. They were brutally tough conditions,” Poulter said. “I had to hang in there.”

After playing just 13 tournaments last year due to a foot injury, Poulter had 10 events this season to earn enough FedEx Cup points or money to remain fully exempt.

He came up short in both categories after missing the cut in the Valero Texas Open in April, but American Brian Gay, who was also playing on a medical exemption after back problems, then alerted officials to a discrepancy in the points structure used for players competing in that category.

“There’s no question I feel better because of that,” said Poulter, who made the most of his reprieve by finishing second in his next event, the Players Championship at Sawgrass.

“There’s a lot of pressure come off my shoulders, I can just go out and play golf.

“It’s just nice to be in a good position. It’s a big stage right now, the third of a run of great events on the European Tour. There’s a lot at stake.”