Wil Besseling and Oscar Lengden share the Challenge de España lead on ten under par going into the final round following a sun-baked day at Izki Golf.
The duo, playing in the penultimate group of the day, passed overnight leader Julien Brun with a string of birdies on the back nine.
Swede Lengden carded a four under par 68 while Besseling went one better by signing for a 67.
The sun finally arrived in Urturi on Saturday following days of testing conditions and local families made the most of the improvement by descending on Izki Golf to watch the action and take part in activities around the practice areas.
And the improved weather conditions marked a sudden enhancement in scoring as numerous players posted low scores early in the day.
One of those was Tomas Santos Silva who signed for a superb seven under par 65.
The Portuguese, playing in the second group of the day, carded eight birdies and a single bogey en route to signing for the low round of the day which catapulted him 47 places into joint sixth.
Another of the day’s low scorers was Englishman Ross McGowan. The 2009 Madrid Masters winner was one under par going into the third round but shot a bogey-free 66 to share fourth place on seven under par.
Playing in one of the final groups of the day, Sweden’s Joel Sjöholm started with aplomb by carding birdies on the first three holes but he was forced to settle for a share of fifth place after three back nine bogeys.
Besseling and Lengden immediately put the pressure on third round leader Brun with birdies at the first and third holes but the Frenchman remained in the driving seat with a birdie of his own at the third.
A birdie and a bogey to finish the front nine meant Besseling made the turn in 34 while Lengden completed the opening stretch in 35 following a six at the par five eighth.
Dutchman Besseling moved to eight under par with a birdie at the par four 11thbefore another pair of gains arrived at the 13thand 14thto reach ten under par, which is where he remained with four straight pars to finish his round.
And Lengden matched him. Birdies at the 14th, 15thand 16thholes meant he too moved to ten under before back-to-back pars at the final two holes gave him a share of the clubhouse lead alongside the 32 year old Dutchman.
Brun had birdied the 11th, 12thand 14thto reach 13 under par, but a run of four consecutive bogeys to end his round meant he dropped back to where he began the day on nine under par.
Co-leader Lengden, 25, was happy with how he played at Izki Golf and has given an insight into what he believes is the key to shooting low in Urturi.
“Today was an up and down round,” he said. “I started off really well but then I got a bad break on eight where I hit a tree and then bounced into the woods where I couldn’t find it.
“After that I kept on playing well and I’m pretty happy with where I’m at right now.
“When I got here I thought the course was really tricky because I’ve changed from a fade to a draw. It’s really a fade course so I started off by practising my fade again when I got here and I think the key is to have a fade off the tee boxes here.
“You’ve got to hit the greens because they’ve cut the rough around the greens really tricky. Hit a lot of greens and a fade off the tee and that’s the recipe for this tournament.”
Besseling, meanwhile, believes he has a real chance of winning the Challenge de España on Sunday, an outcome which would be his first European Challenge Tour victory for ten years.
“It was a nice round,” he said. “I played nicely and felt good. The weather was a lot better today, which is always nice, and five under is very nice. I’m tied for the lead so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.
“The weather made it easy today. The temperature was up to 15 degrees and the ball was flying a little bit further. It was a little bit easier but still a bit windy so you still have to play well to shoot five under.
“I’m happy with the way I’m playing so I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I haven’t been in this position for a long time so I’m just looking forward to it.
“The way I’m playing, I think I have a good chance to win and I’m very positive. I’m patient and mentally I’m in a good state so I think I have a good chance tomorrow.”
