A brilliant third round 63, the lowest score of his European Tour career, handed Bernd Wiesberger a two shot lead going into the final round of the Maybank Malaysian Open as the Austrian’s remarkable form continued at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club.
Having finished sixth, third and fourth in the three Desert Swing events to move into the Official World Golf Ranking’s top 50 for the first time, Wiesberger birdied the first five holes today and spent the remainder of the round trading blows with Alejandro Cañizares at the top of the leaderboard.
The Spaniard and defending champion Lee Westwood had been three clear of the field at the halfway stage, and when Cañizares pitched in at the 16th for eagle he looked set to grab the upper hand.
But Wiesberger holed a 25 footer for birdie on the same hole to recapture a share of the lead, and turned that into a closing hat-trick of gains to reach 17 under par as he seeks a third European Tour title and first since 2012.
“I caught up with the leaders early, which was good, and finish off well,” said the 29 year old Wiesberger. “It was a great day for me. This is my European Tour record - I’ve never shot a 63.
“I’ve been working on the right things which are important for my game. I’ve improved on my putting a lot; I have changed to a different model and it has been working for me. I also have the belief that I can play good golf now.”
After three straight gains, Wiesberger rolled in a ten footer at the fourth before almost holing his pitch at the long fifth to join Cañizares at the top of the leaderboard, after the Spaniard had picked up shots on the first two holes.
A first par of the day was enough for Wiesberger to take the outright lead at the sixth as Cañizares found a greenside bunker and bogeyed.
The big surprise at that stage was the fact that Westwood, a seven shot wire-to-wire victor here last year, was one of the only players in the field not under par for the day.
When the 41 year old finally broke his run of pars it did not come in the manner he had hoped, the former World Number One finding a fairway bunker at the seventh and bogeying.
Cañizares and Wiesberger both birdied the same hole – from 12 and six feet respectively – but the latter dropped a shot at the short next after three-putting, while Westwood had a first gain of the day from 12 feet.
It was 32 year old Cañizares, whose win in Morocco last year ended an eight-year title drought, who turned one in front when he birdied the ninth from ten feet.
Westwood and Wiesberger both got up-and-down at the long tenth for birdies, the latter catching Cañizares as a result.
And Wiesberger soon found himself with a two shot lead as Cañizares failed to get up-and-down from a bunker at the 11th and tangled with greenside rough at the 12th for consecutive bogeys.
Cañizares birdied the 14th from six feet, where Westwood did well to save par after driving into water on the reachable par four.
The Spaniard then saw his approach from 110 yards at the 16th skip in from 110 yards for an eagle two, but Wiesberger followed him in for birdie and both stuck their approaches close at 17 for further gains.
But while Cañizares’ pitch to the last found rough and led to a bogey, Wiesberger rolled in a 15 footer for a potentially crucial two shot swing.
And Wiesberger hopes his recent experience of being in contention on a Sunday can help during the final round, adding: “I’m not discounting anybody; there was a 62 out there and there’s probably going to be another 62 out there as well.
“It is going to be a similar feeling, like the last couple of weeks. I had a fast start today and anybody can do that tomorrow.
“If I keep playing like this then I have a good chance to take this home, but tomorrow is another day and anything can happen. I’ll try and rest it up and give myself a chance on Sunday.”
Cañizares, meanwhile, believes he and Wiesberger can continue to push each other to new heights.
“It was fun, playing alongside these guys is always fun,” he said. “I made more mistakes than the previous days but I’m quite happy I made a two on 16 with a wedge.
“Hopefully tomorrow, I have the same fun. It’s always good to play with someone who is playing well as he’s pulling you to make birdies as well. It was fun to watch, he played great. He kept me going and kept me pushing.
“All I can do is do my best and try to have fun - that’s my goal tomorrow.”
Westwood birdied the last two holes to complete a 69 which left him tied for third with compatriot Paul Waring on 14 under, the latter picking up two eagles in a 65.
Anirban Lahiri was the man to shoot a glittering 62, the Indian firing ten unanswered birdies to climb 16 places into fifth on 12 under.
