Cormac Sharvin jumped 25 places up the leaderboard into a share of 17th after a productive moving day jaunt at the Swiss Challenge Presented by Swiss Golf.
The sole Irish representative over the weekend after recording a clutch two-under par 69 in round two, the Ardglass professional fired five birdies in a three-under par 68 in Lucerne to move to within six shots of the leaders at minus-five and not without hope at the tightly-packed affair.
Indeed, a fascinating final day is in store with Christofer Blomstrand, Oliver Lindell and Julien Quesne sharing the 54-hole lead on 11-under par at Golf Sempachersee.
Overnight leader Blomstrand was unable to add to his 36-hole tally as he carded a one over par 72, meaning Lindell’s four under par 67 and Quesne’s three under 68 were enough to take a share of the lead into the final day, with a further ten players within three shots of top spot.
Swede Blomstrand posted a stunning seven-under par 64 on Day Two but found the going tougher on Day Three and was four over par at the turn due to double bogeys at the first and seventh holes.
However, he bounced back on the final nine holes with birdies at the tenth, 12th and 13th before holing a tricky par putt on the 18th to ensure he is still one of the men to catch as the tournament reaches its conclusion tomorrow.
“It was more difficult today,” Blomstrand said. “It was a bit firmer everywhere and I would say it was simply tougher.
“I played quite well on the back nine actually. I was really bad on the front nine but I bounced back a bit so it will be a fun day tomorrow.
“The putt on 18 was a really hard one and I was lucky to make a good two-putt there. I will have a couple of putts now and then get ready for tomorrow.
“I didn’t feel so good on the range today. If my long game is good tomorrow I know I’m going to be up near the top of the leaderboard. I played really well on the back nine so I’m going to do the same tomorrow, hopefully.”
Lindell carded six birdies, four bogeys and an eagle as he raced into a share of the lead and he believes his ball striking has been key this week as he goes in search of a first European Challenge Tour victory.
“I hoped for a lot of birdies today and I got them but there are still a few problems with my putting,” the Finn said. “I took two or three putts too many on the front nine but then it started to feel better on the back nine.
“My ball striking has been good all week, especially from the tee. You have to be really good from the tee to play well here because you have to hit it on the fairway. I missed the fairway once on the back nine and had no shot.”
Frenchman Quesne, a two-time Challenge Tour and two-time European Tour winner, has endured a difficult two years but is delighted to be back in the mix on the Challenge Tour circuit.
“I am really excited to be in with a chance of winning tomorrow,” he said. “I am quite happy with my game because it’s been a long time since I have played at this level so it’s been a good week for me so far.
“I’ve been working with my coach a lot over the last few weeks because I haven’t been hitting the ball very well.
“It’s been very hard for more than two years now. I’ve been injured a lot and I was thinking about stopping playing, so it will mean a lot to me if I win tomorrow.”
Behind the leading trio is Turkish Airlines Challenge winner Connor Syme, who is one shot back on ten under par following a five-under 66, while Richard Bland, Mathieu Fenasse, Calum Hill and Ricardo Santos are a further shot behind on nine-under par.
The final round will begin at 8.00am local time on Sunday with the leading trio of Blomstrand, Lindell and Quesne teeing off at 9.40am.
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