Day in position to win top event in homeland
He leads Australian Open by 1 after a 69; Spieth 8 shots back.
Jason Day is prepared for a pressure-filled final round at the Australian Open today in Sydney.
Day moved into position for his first Aussie Open title after shooting a 2-under 69 Saturday to take a one-stroke lead. Jordan Spieth didn’t move up the leaderboard much after a 70 but believes he still has a chance to win his third title Down Under.
Day, making his first appearance back home since 2013, birdied the 18th for a 54-hole total of 203, 10-under par, after a tough, windy day that made low scoring difficult. He’s expecting more of the same today.
“It’s going to be just as tough, or if not tougher,” Day said. “So a lot more patience and hopefully I can pull through with a win.”
Day has a strong recent record of converting 54-hole leads into victories on the PGA Tour. He’s six for 13, but he’s converted five of his past six, including the 2015 PGA Championship.
Second-round leader Lucas Herbert was in second place after a 71. Jonas Blixt of Sweden shot 66 to move into a third-place tie with Australian Matt Jones (68), three behind Day.
“I think anything in the 60s tomorrow will seal the deal,” said Day. “I just need to focus on the golf course and not do anything too crazy.”
Defending champion Spieth left himself a daunting task, sitting eight strokes behind Day. Spieth bogeyed the fourth hole after three pars to open his round. He got that shot back with a birdie on the par-4 sixth, then needed putts of 12 feet and 3 feet to save par on the next two holes.
He hit wayward tee shots on the final three holes of the front nine, bogeying the ninth for a 1-over 36. On the back, he birdied the par-5 14th to get back to even par on the day, then added a tap-in birdie on the 18th.
When Spieth won his first Australian Open in 2014, he shot a then-course record 63 in the final round at The Australian to win by six shots.
“Yeah, that’s what we need,” Spieth said. “We need 8 under; that would probably be enough given the conditions for tomorrow.”
European Tour: S.S.P. Chawrasia shot a 1-under 69 in the third round for a one-stroke lead at the Hong Kong Open.
The 39-year-old Indian is at 10-under 200 overall at the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Last year’s runner-up, Rafa Cabrera Bello, had six birdies, two bogeys and an eagle on the par-4 10th for a 6-under 64. The Spaniard shares second place with Australia’s Wade Ormsby (65).
Race to Dubai winner Tommy Fleetwood (66) was two off the pace and tied for fourth with Sweden’s Alexander Bjork (67) and Belgian Thomas Detry (66).
Former champion Justin Rose (68) is at 5 under, a shot ahead of Masters champion Sergio Garcia (66).