Blake Windred among four-way tie for lead at Asia-Pacific Amateur
Saturday 28 September 2019 19:55, UK
Blake Windred birdied the last to retain a share of the lead heading into the final round of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in China.
Windred led outright after the opening two rounds at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai, but he endured a torrid stretch either side of the turn on day three as he made four bogeys in five holes.
But the Australian revived his title hopes with birdies at 14 and 18 around another blemish at the 16th, and his five-foot putt for a closing three lifted him back to the top of the leaderboard on eight under par alongside Japanese pair Ren Yonezawa and Yuto Katsuragawa, and Chinese Taipei's Yung-Hua Liu.
"What I can take away from today is that it wasn't my best performance at all, but I was quite happy with my attitude on the golf course and when I rolled that birdie putt in on the last," said Windred, the world amateur No 11.
"On the last tee, I was seven under and I didn't feel great mentally, but I told myself that there's another day and another opportunity to shoot a low score and take home the trophy. That kind of pumped me up a little bit, and then I was in the right space to make a birdie on the last."
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Yonezawa missed a short par putt on the final green to card a disappointing 73, but Katsuragawa closed with a birdie to cap an entertaining 69 in which he enjoyed an outstanding front nine, reeling off five consecutive birdies from the third before dropping shots on each of the next three holes.
Liu's 69 was far more consistent, mixing four birdies with just one bogey, while Won Jun Lee returned the low round of the day with a seven-birdie 66 which lifted him to within a shot of the lead alongside defending champion Takumi Kanaya, who birdied four of the first seven holes in his 68.
An exciting final round is in prospect with no fewer than 15 players within five shots of the lead, with the winner earning a place in the field for both The Masters and The Open next year, provided they retain their amateur status.
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