Cheonan, Korea, Oct 20 - Kim Dae-hyun fired a tournament-best five-under-par 66 on Saturday to grab a share of the lead with two-time winner Kim Dae-sub (70) going into the final round of OneAsia's Kolon Korea Open.
The pair are three under par for the tournament and three shots clear of Kang Wook-soon (69) around the brutally tough Woo Jeong Hills Country Club course, around 85 kms (50 miles) south of the capital.
Kang Kyung-nam, who led for the first two rounds, was a shot further back with a share of fourth place after slumping to a 77.
Kim Dae-hyun, runner up on OneAsia's Order of Merit in 2010 when he won the GS Caltex Maekyung Open, has made just two cuts on the circuit this year, although he won a matchplay event on the Korea Tour tour last month.
"This is a very difficult tournament this year, so any score under par is good," he said after a round that included seven birdies and two bogeys.
"I am not sure if I could go five under par again."
Kim Dae-sub is well in the hunt for a third Korea Open title -- but his first as a professional -- after winning as a 16-year-old amateur in 1998 and repeating the feat in 2001, after which he turned to the paid ranks.
His performance is even more remarkable given he has not played tournament golf for nearly two years, having only just completed his compulsory military service.
"I am just trying to play steady and not expect too much," he said, despite winning last month on the Korean Tour, three weeks after being discharged.
Kim Dae-sub had what amounted to a nine-to-five office job during his 20-months of national service and so kept his game up by playing and practicing at the weekend, but he said tournament golf was still taking some getting used to.
"I thought about trying for the Japan or PGA Tours, but first I need to test myself against the Korean players and get back into shape," he said.
Kang, the only player to shoot the first two rounds under par, was six over on a day his putter went cold -- particularly on the ninth, when he four-putted for a triple bogey.
Star attraction Ryo Ishikawa from Japan is not out of the tournament after shooting a third-round 69 that leaves him six shots behind the leaders and alone in 11th place.
Y.E. Yang, the first player from Asia to win a Major and runner up in last week's Nanshan China Masters, shot a 72 to stand at two over for the tournament.
Indonesia's number one Rory Hie had a tough day on the course, when 6 bogeys, a double bogey and just one birdie saw him tumble to a share of 35th with a total of 223. This means tomorrow he will need a record breaking round to get back in the running for a top ten position, something that may prove too hard with the current condition of the course.
Scores after round 3 of the Kolon Korea Open being played at the par 71, 6,605-metre (7,225- yard) Woo Jeong Hills Country Club course (a- denotes amateur):
210 - KIM Dae-hyun (KOR) 71-73-66, KIM Dae-sub (KOR) 72-68-70.
213 - KANG Wook-soon (KOR) 73-71-69.
214 - PARK Hyun-bin (KOR) 73-72-69, LEE Sang-hee (KOR) 77-68-69, CHOI Ho-sung (KOR) 71-71-72, KANG Kyung-nam (KOR) 68-69-77.
215 - NOH Seung-yul (KOR) 73-74-68, Y. E. YANG (KOR) 73-70-72, HONG Chang-kyu (USA) 71-71-73.
216 - Ryo ISHIKAWA (JPN) 75-72-69.
217 - CHAE Bum-geun (KOR) 72-74-71, CHOI Jin-ho (KOR) 74-72-71, David OH (USA) 73-72-72, LEE Seong-ho (KOR) 74-70-73, RYU Hyun-woo (KOR) 75-69-73.
218 - CHUNG Joon (KOR) 76-75-67, LEE Chang-woo (am, KOR) 74-76-68.
219 - PARK Sung-kug (KOR) 79-70-70, MO Joong-kyung (KOR) 78-70-71, MAENG Dong-seop (KOR) 73-74-72, Chris CAMPBELL (AUS) 74-73-72, HWANG In-choon (KOR) 74-70-75, Lucas LEE (BRA) 72-71-76.
220 - HONG Sung-min (KOR) 78-74-68, PARK Jun-won (KOR) 74-76-70, KIM Byung-jun (KOR) 71-75-74.
221 - Garrett SAPP (USA) 70-79-72, Wisut ARTJANAWAT (THA) 73-75-73, KIM Seung-hyuk (KOR) 74-73-74.
222 - Henry EPSTEIN (AUS) 76-75-71, KIM Ki-soo (KOR) 75-75-72, LEE Jin-won (KOR) 77-73-72, KIM Woo-chan (KOR) 75-73-74.
223 - PARK Eun-shin (KOR) 79-73-71, BAE Sang-moon (KOR) 79-72-72, YU Gyoung-Yoon (KOR) 83-67-73, BAE Hee-chan (KOR) 73-75-75, SUK Jong-yul (KOR) 71-76-76, PARK Sang-hyun (KOR) 76-71-76, LEE Ki-sang (KOR) 73-73-77, Rory HIE (INA) 73-72-78
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment