The unpredictable Englishman suffered his first career defeat in May when Usyk won by split decision to become the first undisputed champion of the four-belt era
sports2 days ago
Australian Cam Smith set himself up to win his first title in Asia after taking a share of the third-round lead on Saturday at the $2 million Hong Kong Open along with Phachara Khongwatmai from Thailand.
Smith had an unusually frustrating day on the Composite Course at the holy grail of golf in the SAR, the Hong Kong Golf Club, but reached 16 under for the tournament after shooting a five under par 65.
His playing-partner and overnight leader Phachara, chasing his second win on the Asian Tour, fired a 66.
New Zealand’s Ben Campbell returned a 65 and is one stroke back, a shot ahead Chinese-Taipei’s Max Lee Chieh-po, who came in with a 66.
Smith, who has won twice on the LIV Golf League this year, the most recent being in Bedminster in August, had an erratic day off the tee. The worst of those shots came on the 16th where he hooked his tee shot into the trees, from where he was able to get his ball back into play and make a bogey.
“Hit a really crappy shot off the tee [on 16],” said the 30 year-old, playing in the event for only the second time, the first being nine years ago when he tied ninth.
“Didn’t feel comfortable with the long stuff all day today. So little bit of work to do overnight I think, and get it back to where it should be, and it will be fine tomorrow.”
The slip up on 16 was his only dropped shot of the day, while his silky-smooth putting stroke saved the day for him with six birdies.
“I must need to tighten up the driver and the stuff off the tee. I didn’t hit as many fairways today which led to more missed greens.
“It was a bit of a grind out there today. Hopefully it can be stress free tomorrow. I found parts of the course I don’t want to see ever again,” Smith added.
Phachara will have another excellent opportunity to add a second Asian Tour title to his resume tomorrow.
At the end of 2021 the Thai star won the Laguna Phuket Championship for his maiden win on the Asian Tour and despite numerous opportunities a second win has remained elusive.
A dropped shot on the first did little to deter him as he rallied with five birdies later, including three on the back nine to keep the pressure on his Australian opponent.
Campbell, like Phachara, faces arguably the biggest day of his career tomorrow as he tries to win one of Asia’s biggest golf tournaments.
He has been enjoying a strong season, including a joint runner-up placing in the New Zealand Open in March, on his home course at Millbrook Resort.
American Andy Ogletree fired a 66, to finish on 11 under, and will be crowned The International Series Order of Merit champion tomorrow barring a shock turn of events.
If he tumbles down the leaderboard then Spaniard David Puig or Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent, second and third on the Merit list, could potentially catch him by winning this week and the BNI Indonesian Masters presented by TNE next week – the final International Series event of the season.
Dubai Golden VISA Awardee (ind) Gaganjeet Bhullar is tied 22nd after rounds of 67, 66 and 68.
ALSO RED
He told Khaleej Times: “My round today was good. I only missed one fairway. I gave myself a lot of birdie opportunities – which is the secret to good scoring around this course – but I did not convert enough of them.”
Puig has an outside chance as he also carded a 66 and is 10 under while Vincent had a poor day shooting 74 and sitting at two under is out of the running.
Third Round Leaders
(6,710, Par 70).
C. Smith (Aus) 63. 66. 65. 194.
P. Khongwatmai (Thai) 65. 63. 66. 194.
B. Campbell (NZ) 66. 64. 65. 195.
L. Chieh-po (Chinese Taipei) 65. 65. 66. 196.
The unpredictable Englishman suffered his first career defeat in May when Usyk won by split decision to become the first undisputed champion of the four-belt era
sports2 days ago
The team from Portugal also claimed the championship title after a hard-fought four-round season
sports2 days ago
Tristan Jass and Jesser, who continue to captivate millions worldwide with their innovative content, encourage young basketball enthusiasts in the Middle East to come forward and create content
sports2 days ago
Fresh off his birthday, the teenager delivers consistency to lead the Boys 15-18 Elite Division, while Russia's Ailsa Molokanova dominates the Girls 15-18 field
sports3 days ago
Terry Fox launched an epic run on a prosthetic leg in 1980 across Canada to raise money and awareness for cancer research
sports3 days ago
With new faces participating this year, the teams have been reshuffled to make the league more thrilling than ever
sports3 days ago
Spain win the mixed team event in trials
sports3 days ago
Antetokounmpo scored 26 points, grabbed 19 rebounds and dished 10 assists and to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA Cup title
sports3 days ago