Brendan Lawlor fired a four-over 76 at the G4D Tour @ BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and trails leader Tomasso Perrino by four strokes.
The Dundalk man made birdies at the eighth and 18th holes, but dropped shots at one, nine and 10 before making three additional bogeys on the spin from the 13th.
Lawlor, who won the inaugural G4D Open at Woburn back in May is very much in the mix and if he can eradicate some of the errors in tomorrow’s (Tuesday’s) final round then he can round off a sublime summer by taking the two most prestigious titles on offer.
Three strokes further back is Conor Stone who also made two birdies but was left to rue double bogeys at six and 17.
But at level par, Perrino is the man they all have to catch. The Italian, who won the G4D Tour @ ISPS HANDA World Invitational presented AVIV Clinics during last year’s inaugural campaign, birdied his final two holes to shoot 72 over the West Course.
World Number One Kipp Popert, who won his seventh title in Northern Ireland last month, sits in second place on two over par, a shot clear of Juan Postigo Arce in the ten-player field.
Perrino’s best result so far this campaign came at the Betfred British Masters where he finished fourth but he is well placed to become the fifth different winner this season.
“This is my favourite course, not because I’m first but because it is the best place, the best atmosphere.
“The driving range is very small. All the players see you that practise. The condition of the course was unbelievable.
“The greens were perfect, the rough is too tough for us but it’s okay to play I think.
“In Italy we say Wentworth is the garden of Europe. To take the lead on this course is fantastic.
“There are many good players behind me but I will try to play my own game and we’ll see.”
He birdied two of his opening eight holes before back-to-back bogeys either side of the turn saw him drop back to level par.
After cancelling out a third dropped shot of the day at the 12th with a bounce back birdie on the 13th, Perrino bogeyed the 15th and 16th before making a strong finish to top the leaderboard.
Popert mixed five birdies with seven bogeys in his 74, while two-time G4D Tour winner Postigo Arce made three birdies in his 75.
In his G4D Tour debut, at the age of 65, five-time PGA TOUR champion and former Ryder Cup member Ken Green carded a 77 to sit in a share of fifth place. American Green had his right leg amputated due to injuries sustained in a motorhome crash in 2009.
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