Sunday 11 October 2015 10:53, UK
Matt Fitzpatrick will head into the final round of the British Masters supported by Sky Sports tied for the lead after a third day of significant movement on the leaderboard at Woburn.
Luke Donald was among a number players to surge into contention after he fired a flawless 65, but Fitzpatrick displayed composure beyond his years as he retained a share of the lead with Kiradech Aphibarnrat on 12 under par.
The 21-year-old, the youngest player in the field, dropped an early shot at the tough par-four second, but he responded with a birdie at the fourth and picked up further shots at seven and nine to turn in 33.
Fitzpatrick was not completely on top of his game, but he dug deep to grind out five straight pars before making a well-crafted birdie at the 15th, and he produced a superb up-and-down from a bunker at the rear of the final green to card a 68.
"It's impossible not to think about winning, but my focus is to finish as high as possible and if it's a win, it's a win," he said. "I think when you've got six holes to play and you're up there, then things might change.
"I'm really excited and looking forward to it already. It's my second or third time in the last group, so I'm really looking forward to it. Some great names have won wire-to-wire. It would be nice to add mine to that.
"Luke is someone I've spent a little bit of time over the past couple of months. A lot of people say we are similar players but I don't think so. I think Luke's short game is absolutely unbelievable, and that's something I'm always working on."
Aphibarnrat was first into the clubhouse on 12 under as he kept a bogey off his card in his third 67 of the tournament, and the leading duo enjoy a one-stroke advantage over a bunched field, with 16 players within five of the lead.
In-form Soren Kjeldsen shares the overnight lead with Fitzpatrick and he got to 12 under with a run of three birdies in five holes around the turn, although the Dane stuttered down the stretch and gave a shot back at 13 before parring in to return a 69.
The veteran shares third with Paraguay's Fabrizio Zanotti, who had a remarkable 10-hole stretch mid-round which included five birdies, an eagle at the seventh, and two dropped shots.
Zanotti parred the last three to post a 66, but it was Donald who produced the round of the day as the former world No 1 carded six birdies in nine holes from the seventh in his error-free 65.
Donald vaulted 28 places up the leaderboard to nine under alongside Shane Lowry, who struggled on the greens but still managed four birdies against two bogeys in a battling 69.
Romain Wattel birdied three of the last four holes to return a 67 and get to nine under, while Richard Bland slipped three shots off the lead following a disappointing 70.
Lee Westwood gave himself an outside chance of repeating his 2007 British Masters victory with a 67 that lifted him to seven under, one ahead of his Ryder Cup team-mate Graeme McDowell (70).
But tournament host Ian Poulter is seven strokes off the pace after firing an erratic 70 which left him in a tie for 25th alongside fellow Englishmen David Howell, David Horsey, Andy Sullivan and Robert Rock.
