Matthew Southgate birdied four of his last five holes before the turn to open up a one shot lead as the final round of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship developed into a two horse race.
The Englishman turned in 33 at St Andrews to get to 23 under and sit one shot ahead of playing partner Victor Perez, with four players back in third at 19 under.
Southgate won the St Andrews Links Trophy here in 2010, while Frenchman Perez is a resident of nearby Dundee, and the duo were set for an enthralling links battle to see who will win their first European Tour title.
Luke Donald, Tony Finau, Joakim Lagergren and Paul Waring made up the group four shots off the lead.
Waring put a brilliant approach to two feet at the first to get within one of the lead and playing partner Lagergren also picked up a shot from long range.
A Southgate three putt on the first handed Perez the solo lead and with the wind the strongest it had been all week, Waring gave his early gain straight back on the second.
Lagergren and Waring both made two putt birdies on the par five fifth and Southgate did the same in the group behind to join the lead.
It looked like playing partner Perez had left the door open as he missed the green on the same hole with his second but the 27-year-old got up and down to maintain his advantage.
Southgate was soon level again, however, as he hit a stunning approach to four feet to get to 21 under and he was the solo leader on the next after another excellent second.
Perez hit straight back as he put his tee shot on the par three eighth to eight feet and the leaders were three clear of the rest of the field.
The ebb and flow continued and Southgate holed from 12 feet on the ninth to edge into a one shot lead at the turn.
Donald looked to be out of contention when he made three bogeys in a row from the second but he bounced back with two birdies.
A hat-trick of gains from the eighth had him flying up the leaderboard and when the former World Number One almost holed his tee shot at the 11th, he was in a share of second.
Finau had birdied the first from 12 feet but the putter then went cold as he made eight pars in a row before holing from similar distance on the tenth.
Matthew Jordan, Tom Lewis, Alex Noren, Callum Shinkwin and Jordan Smith were at 18 under.
