Arjun Atwal fought tough conditions and fatigue to keep a share of the lead with a battling three-under-par 68 at the end of the third round at the Mauritius Open golf tournament.
He now shares the lead with Louis De Jager of South Africa, who produced a bogey-free 67.
Still recovering from a 16-hour journey from Kuala Lumpur, Atwal is searching for a ninth Asian Tour title and his first since 2014.
Atwal, a former Asian Tour number one and captain of the Asian team for next month’s EurAsia Cup, enjoyed a solid front nine 32 before adding his fifth birdie on hole 14. He was ahead by one-shot heading into 18 but missed a four-foot par putt to finish on 13-under-par 200 at the Heritage Golf Club.
Other Indians in the fray -- Shiv Kapur, who has two wins this season, moved up to T-12 with a fine round 68 and is six behind the leaders, while Gaganjeet Bhullar (67) moved up to T-24 at 5-under. But SSP Chawrasia (73) slipped from T-13 to T-28 at 4-under.
“I played solid all day except for a blip on the last hole which won’t bother me. It did play harder today. It was definitely blowing harder out of the three days,” Atwal said.
{{/usCountry}}“I played solid all day except for a blip on the last hole which won’t bother me. It did play harder today. It was definitely blowing harder out of the three days,” Atwal said.
{{/usCountry}}Talented Filipino Miguel Tabuena birdied the closing two holes to stay one-shot behind the leaders following a round of 67. He shared the third place with South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli, who also birdied the last hole for a 68.
De Jager shot 67, highlighted by two birdies in each half, to charge into contention at the €1million (approximately USD 1.07 million) event sanctioned by the Asian Tour, European Tour and Sunshine Tour.
De Jager, who said he is inspired to win the tournament after playing in a pro-am with South African legend Gary Player last week, is playing the lead group for the first time in a tri-sanctioned event. PTI