Padraig Harrington will take a share of the lead into the final round of the D+D Real Czech Masters after matching Andrea Pavan with a brilliant bogey-free 65 at Albatross Golf Resort.
The three-time Major Championship winner turns 47 at the end of the month but he went blow for blow with Pavan - who is 17 years his junior - in round three as the duo got to 17 under and opened up a three-shot lead over Malaysia's Gavin Green.
Scotsman Scott Jamieson was at 13 under, a shot clear of Italy's Nino Bertasio, Thai Phachara Khongwatmai and Finn Tapio Pulkkanen.
Harrington's victory at the 2016 Portugal Masters was his first on the European Tour since the 2008 US PGA Championship but he will be going in search of a 16th win in an 11th country on Sunday.
The performance represents a brilliant return to form for the Ryder Cup Vice Captain, who had made just one cut this season at the Italian Open before he arrived in Prague.
“I feel like it was a day too early,” he said. “It took a lot out of me, a lot of focus and I holed the putts that you’d like to be holing on a Sunday. I’m hoping there’s still another round in it but it was certainly one of those days that you’d like to get on a Sunday afternoon rather than a Saturday afternoon.
“You’ve got to go out there expecting a roller coaster, you’d love it not to be but that’s what you’ve got to prepare yourself for - that you’ll make some mistakes mentally, you’ll get good and bad breaks, you’ll hole some putts and you’ll miss some. It’s too much to dream of a nice perfect day so we’ll prepare ourselves for a bit of everything.
“In my mind I was trying to rationalise that I’ve got to get 20 under par for the tournament and obviously I got quite a long way down that road, we’re three ahead of the pack so hopefully we move ahead and get out there and have good front nines and have it as a duel between the two of us. That would the nice scenario but it very rarely is the nice scenario on a Sunday.”
Italy's Pavan is searching for his first European Tour victory but he has four wins on the Challenge Tour and finished top of its Rankings in 2013.
His top ten at the Nordea Masters last week was his third of the season and he is enjoying an excellent campaign after regaining his playing privileges at the Qualifying School, sitting 53rd on the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex.
“It was very good,” he said. “Seven under was just a very good round and I hit it very well off the tee, I was always in play which is very nice. I putted really well especially on the back nine, I made a lot of good putts and a couple of good par saves.
“I’m definitely looking forward to playing with Padraig tomorrow. It’s the first time I’m in this position on the European Tour so it will be good, probably a long day but I’ll just try to keep doing my own thing and not watch him too much.
“He’s obviously won lot of tournaments and has a lot of experience so I will try to enjoy it as much as I can.”
Pavan holed from 12 feet on the second and half that range on the third before an eight-footer on the fifth had the 29 year old in a share of the lead as he and overnight leader Green did battle.
The reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit champion had birdied the par five first after getting on in two and then holed from 18 feet on the fourth for another gain.
A Green bogey on the fifth after his tee-shot ended up next to a fence briefly had Pavan in the solo lead and Green was in a share of second with Harrington.
The Irishman was over the back of the first in two but got up and down beautifully, hit an excellent approach into the sixth and then a tee-shot to tap-in range on the next.
Green was a long way left off the sixth tee but played a sensational up and down for a birdie to get back into a share, before Pavan edged back ahead with a nice approach into the ninth.
A nice chip saw Harrington also birdie the ninth but when Pavan made a gain on the tenth from 25 feet, he led by two.
Green took advantage of the ninth and Harrington holed from 15 feet on the tenth to cut the gap, before the latter got on the par five 12th green in two for a birdie and a share of top spot.
An eight-footer on the 14th put Harrington into the lead on his own but Pavan holed a wonderful double-breaker down the slope on the 15th and the duo led by two, with Green dropping a shot on the 17th.
Jamieson holed a long chip for eagle on the first, a monster putt on the second and birdied the fourth but could not make further progress with another four birdies cancelled out by four bogeys in a 68.
Bertasio made five birdies in six holes after the turn in a 67, Khongwatmai carded a 68, and Pulkkanen slipped back with bogeys on the 13th and 16th in a 70.
A win for Eddie Pepperell could move him into a Ryder Cup place while Thomas Pieters is out to impress Captain Thomas Bjørn, and they were both at 11 under alongside Alexander Knappe and Lee Slattery.
