KUNMING, 3 Sept 2016, (HK Golfer News Wire) - Hak fired a third-round 69 to stand at a total of 16-under 197, three shots behind leader China’s Zecheng Dou. Dou made eight birdies and no bogeys in his third-round 63.
Dou has already recorded a historic year, and it is apparent he’s not satisfied with what he’s accomplished this season. His body of work has allowed him to move to No. 213 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
Dou, a 19-year-old from Henan, has been the best player on the Ping An Bank China Tour - PGA TOUR China Series this season, and he looked like it as he forged into his third 54-hole lead of the year. He went on to win both of those earlier tournaments, and he gave no indication that he won’t repeat this week what he did at the Henan Open and the United Investment Real Estate Wuhan Open. Of his three 2016 victories, Dou’s only come-from-behind win came at the Suning Estate Nanjing Zhongshan Open. He began the final round two strokes off the pace at that event.
“I played pretty solid today. All pars are good pars, and I actually didn’t have any saving pars,” Dou said of the 10 holes that didn’t result in birdies. “I am very satisfied with my round.”
Dou’s 63 is a career-low, two strokes better than the 65 he shot in the third round of his Wuhan victory and in the first round this week. He also improved his third-round scoring average this year to 67.71.
“When I realized that I was on my way to my best single-round score and my best 54-hole score in a [PGA TOUR] China tournament, I felt a little bit nervous. Once I got over this feeling, I advanced,” Dou noted.
A big advantage with 18 holes to play is nothing new for Dou. He led by six through 54 holes in Henan and held a three-shot advantage with 18 holes to play in Wuhan. And of Dou’s top-five closest pursuers this week, none has won a PGA TOUR China tournament.
New to this lofty position is Luo, just a year older than Dou and in uncharted territory for him. While Luo has only played six tournaments combined in 2015 and 2016, one of those starts - at the Henan Open in May - led to a tie for sixth.
Luo proved his second-round 63, eight strokes better than his next-best 2016 score, was no fluke by starting his round with two birdies and an eagle. Although he slowed down after the torrid start, with seven consecutive pars, he made five more birdies over his final eight holes, with only one bogey sprinkled in for an identical 63. His 126 over the last two days is the second-best 36-hole run in Tour history, bettered only by Alex Kang’s 123 at this year’s Cadillac Championship.
“My start was very strong today, and I chipped the ball very well. But I knew even with the fast start, after the bogey on the 12th, I had to catch more birdies if I wanted a chance. And they came,” said Luo, a member of the China national team. To finish his round, Luo birdied the 13th, 15th, 16th and 18th holes. He’s 18-under since he made a triple bogey-7 on his sixth hole of the first round.
“All I did was keep solid and wait for my chances,” he added.