Gary Murphy endured a rollercoaster back nine to leave him inside the top 20, but 10 shots off the leader Simon Griffiths, at the Reignwood Legends event in Beijing.
Murphy carded a one-under-par 71, which included a back nine featuring three birdies, an eagle, a bogey, and a double-bogey. The Kilkenny native is in a tie for 19th, 10 off the pace, and five shots off the top-five.
Griffiths will take a two-shot lead into Sunday after an excellent round in increasingly blustery and difficult conditions, but it could have been even better but for a double bogey on the final hole.
The reigning Rookie of the Year made a blistering start in calm conditions with five birdies in a row from the 1st and a magnificent 6-iron to three feet to set up an eagle at the 8th. He made the turn in just 29 shots, but the wind kicked up for his back nine. His first dropped shot of the day came at the 11th, but back-to-back red numbers on 15 and 16 put him four shots clear at -12.
The 452-yard 18th was a beast today, playing into the wind and to a pin tucked in the back-right of a long green that’s guarded by water short and right and deep bunkers to the left. Griffiths was unfortunate to have a plugged lie in a greenside bunker after his third shot, but he holed a gritty six-footer for double bogey and a best-of-the-day 66 for a two-shot lead heading into the final round.
“It’s mixed emotions,” said Griffiths after this round. “I got off to a flier when the wind was down and then I finished pretty poorly, to be honest. But I’ll still take a 66.”
Griffiths has been getting used to being in contention with two wins and eight top-10s in his last 15 Legends Tour starts, but the Order of Merit number six is pragmatic about how much those experiences will help going into the final round: “They do and they don’t, because it’s a new day and you’ve still got to hit the shots. Just because you’ve played well in the past, doesn’t mean you’re going to go out and play well in the last round. You’ve got to go out with the same emotions, deal with it, and try and play well. There are so many good players that you know it’s always going to be difficult.
“A lot depends on what the weather is like. If it’s calm tomorrow, the course is sort of gettable. But if it blows like it did this afternoon, it’s a different animal.”
The three players in a tie for second on eight-under-par, are DP World Tour winner Emanuele Canonica, last year’s Zambia Legends champion Keith Horne and this year’s Qualifying School victor Shinichi Yokota.
Murphy gets his final round underway at 2.10 am Irish time, as he will look for a strong finish to challenge the top-10.
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