A fighting round from Ireland's Damien McGrane has given him a 3-stroke lead going into the last day of the Volvo China Open at the CBD International golf Club in Beijing.
Weather conditions were kinder than the first two days, especially in the afternoon, but mounting tension as the competition progresses kept scores high. By the end of the day only twenty players were under par. McGrane lies on –11, followed by Oliver Wilson of England, and France's Michael Lorenzo Vera, the leader over the first two days. Both are on –8. Scott Strange of Australia was the biggest mover of the day with a strong round of 66 to move him onto –6 overall.
The great news for local supporters is that Liang Wen-chong is only just out of the top ten, lying joint 14th on –2, the same score on which he stated the day. Wen-chong too had to battle for his score, with four birdies, two bogeys, and a double-bogey.
Wen-chong's double bogey on the par-three 12th was a perfect example of the challenge posed by the course, which invites players to take a risk and then punishes them for the slightest indiscretion. He played a brave shot for the pin, close to the front edge of the left side of the green. His ball fell only a couple of feet sort of what would have been an easy tap-in for birdie – instead it lodged in thick grass on the face of the bank above the bunker. Wen-chong's first attempt at the green succeeded in moving the ball only a few inches, and he then two-putted for a five, to the groans of a substantial following of fans.
Smiles returned on the next two holes, where he won back the two lost strokes with immediate birdies. This was no mean feat as it included the notoriously difficult 14th.
The day was full of incident. Just minutes after Liang's difficulties on 12, Oliver Wilson played the same shot, but to the right spot on the green. His ball tapped the pin, rolled round the hole, and came to rest on the edge. He will never come closer to a hole-in-one without actually making it.
Zane Scotland followed Liang's birdie on 14 with one of his own, chipping in from the side of the green. "That feels like an eagle", he said with a grin as he moved on to the 15th tee.
Li Chao, China's other representative at the top of the field, lost a little ground with a 76 to take him to +2 overall. Amateur Hu Mu struggled with a five-over 77, but has the right to take great pride and pleasure at his presence over the weekend in China’s premier tournament.
Most disappointed will be Argentinean Rafael Echenique. An early leader on the first day, Rafael carded a +10 score yesterday to leave him at the back of the field alongside countryman Julio Zapata.
Poor weather is forecast tomorrow, and the winner of the tournament will be the player who digs deepest. Low scores will be hard to come by, and McGrane's cushion of three strokes may well prove invaluable.
(China.org.cn by David FergusonApril 20, 2008)