The 37-year-old Chandigarh golfer (65-66-68), who began the day with a two-stroke advantage, posted an error-free round consisting of four birdies to move to 17-under 199 heading into the final round.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Kolkata\u2019s Viraj Madappa (72-67-63) fired the day\u2019s lowest score, a nine-under 63, to climb nine places from tied 11th to second at 14-under 202. The 28-year-old, a two-time PGTI winner and former Asian Tour champion, recorded an eagle on the par-four sixth, eight birdies and a solitary bogey in his round today.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Overnight second-placed Stepan Danek (65-68-70) of the Czech Republic slipped to third at 13-under 203. The 29-year-old\u2019s two-under 70 featured an eagle on the par-five 18th, three birdies, a bogey and a double bogey.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Chandigarh\u2019s Jairaj Singh Sandhu (66-71-67) climbed from tied seventh into a share of fourth at 12-under 204 alongside Noida\u2019s Amardeep Malik (67-68-69).<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Ajeetesh, a five-time DP World PGTI winner and former Asian Tour champion, was pleased to negotiate the added pressure of leading without dropping a shot. \u201cIt was a solid round,\u201d Sandhu said. \u201cThe feeling is naturally a little different when you begin the day in the lead, so you have to account for that pressure. Overall, I played well. There were a couple of missed opportunities, but that is part of golf.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Birdies on the ninth and 10th helped Sandhu build momentum after a steady start.\u201cThe birdies on the ninth and 10th were particularly important,\u201d he said. \u201cI began with a run of pars, so making a couple of putts around the turn helped me settle down, regain momentum and manage the rest of the round.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Sandhu has tried to keep his approach uncomplicated, concentrating on the immediate task rather than the leaderboard. \u201cI try to keep things as simple as possible and focus on the next shot,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is very easy to get ahead of yourself in golf, particularly when you are leading. I aim to give every shot my full attention.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Despite holding a three-stroke advantage, Sandhu expects a strong final-round challenge on a course offering several birdie opportunities.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThere are plenty of quality players in contention, and a lot of birdies can be made here,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll have to remain aggressive and continue making birdies. I\u2019ll follow the same approach that has worked over the first three days.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Despite holding a three-stroke advantage, Sandhu expects a strong final-round challenge on a course offering several birdie opportunities.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Current Race to DP World India Championship leader Saptak Talwar (67-68-73) slipped from tied fourth to tied 14th at eight-under 208. Defending champion N Thangaraja of Sri Lanka followed rounds of 69 and 70 with a third-round 72 to reach five-under 211 for a share of 23rd place.<\/p>\r\n\r\n