Sweden’s Marcus Kinhult will hold a two-shot lead heading into the final round of the Ras Al Khaimah 2016 Golf Challenge after firing a bogey-free seven-under par 65 on Friday.
Kinhult, 20, birdied three of the first four holes at Al Hamra Golf Club as he made his charge to the top of the leaderboard, before further birdies on nine, 12, 14, and 15.
Spain’s Pedro Oriol, and English duo Max Orrin and Jordan Smith all shot five-under par to share second.
• Gallery: Golfers mark inaugural RAK 2016 Golf Challenge by hitting balls off Jebel Jais
Kinhult entered the tournament in 68th place on the Road to Oman and in need of a top three finish to qualify for the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final. However, he is remaining focused on the task at hand.
“I’m trying not to think of the Grand Final at all,” he said. “It’s a long way to go and plenty of guys chasing who are in the same position as me, needing a top three or a top five, so it’s going to be tough tomorrow.
“I’ll try to be comfortable with leading. It’s not a situation I’ve been in too many times before but I’ll just try to stick to my game and do the same as I did today, then we’ll see what happens.”
Smith finished his round with back-to-back birdies to stay in contention as he aims to regain his No 1 Ranking, with current Road to Oman leader Alexander Knappe having missed the cut.
Overnight leader Romain Langasque struggled on a good day for scoring, although the Frenchman’s two-under par round of 70 leaves him on 13-under par, and still in the hunt for a first Challenge Tour win.
The big mover of the day was Italy’s Matteo Delpodio, who shot an seven-under par 65 to climb 42 places into a tie for 17th.
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