Home hero Adam Scott made a closing eagle for the second day in a row to take a one-shot lead into the final round of the ISPS HANDA Australian Open.
Adrian Meronk had tied the course record and his lowest DP World Tour round with a 63 to set the target at ten under and it looked like he would be the man with the advantage after 54 holes.
But Scott made a birdie on the 15th and then eagled the last in a 67 to leapfrog the Pole as he looks for a second win in his national open after triumphing 13 years ago.
Min Woo Lee carded a 65 to sit four shots off the lead alongside fellow Australian Haydn Barrow, with Kiwi Josh Geary and Irishman Conor Purcell at six under.
In the women's event, South Korea's Jiyai Shin will take a one-shot lead over South African Ashleigh Buhai into the final round, while Kurtis Barkley signed for a sensational 69 to lead the Australian All Abilities Championship @ the ISPS HANDA Australian Open - the opening event of the 2023 G4D Tour season - by three shots at one under.
Scott was frustrated after a 71 on day one at Kingston Heath Golf Club but since moving over to Victoria he has barely put a foot wrong, making just one bogey in his last two rounds to fly up the leaderboard.
Huge crowds are sure to follow the former World Number One on the final day as he looks for a 12th DP World Tour title full of belief in an all-star group with Meronk and Lee.
"I think the crowd’s been awesome the last two days out here," he said. "It’s been a great week. It’s great to see so many people coming out to the golf and I certainly have had incredible support, just going to the first tee. I’ve felt the love, so I’m looking forward to feeling it tomorrow and hopefully I can play some really good golf and show them a win out there.
"I believe I’m going to do it but without using clichés, there’s no point thinking about my winner’s speech right now. I’ve got a long way to navigate my round, get around the course tomorrow, but I absolutely believe I’m going to do it. If you don’t believe in it, then you won’t do it.
"So, I’ve got to go out tomorrow and do much of the same stuff I did today and if I get a couple of good numbers and the putts drop, I know when to challenge and when to hold back a little."
Co-overnight-leader David Micheluzzi made a rapid start as he took advantage of the driveable par-four first and then left himself just four feet at the second but he left his second shot in the rough on the third to sit in a tie for the lead with the surging Meronk.
The Horizon Irish Open winner had left himself just six feet for eagle at the first and while he had to settle for birdie, he added another at the second and third from 12 feet at the fourth.
Another gain came from three feet at the sixth, he holed a 30-footer on the seventh and then put an approach to ten feet at the next to hit the summit.
A Meronk bogey on the ninth edged Micheluzzi ahead and the 26-year-old took advantage of a fortunate bounce off the tee at the sixth with a 15-foot right-to-lefter but he gave the shot back on the eighth.
Another bogey on the ninth had Meronk back in a share and when the 29-year-old got up and down at the 15th after almost driving the green, he had the solo lead for the first time.
A gain on the 16th was followed by a bogey on the next but Meronk made a two-putt birdie on the last to set the clubhouse target and lead by two.
Micheluzzi dropped another shot on the 13th and Scott was now the nearest challenger as he recovered from a bogey on the ninth by putting a stunning recovery at the 12th to tap-in range.
He drove up to near the front of the 15th green and two-putted from a long way out for a birdie, before putting his second to 15 feet at the par-five last and rolling home the putt.
Lee started from the tenth and made a gain on his opener before rattling off a hat-trick of birdies from the 13th. He bogeyed the 17th but bounced back by holing a bunker shot for eagle on the next and hitting an excellent approach to set up a birdie on the second.
A double-bogey on the fourth threatened to derail his progress but he almost holed out from the sand again on the ninth, setting up a closing birdie and putting him alongside Barron, who carded a 68.
Geary recorded a 69 and Purcell signed for a 66 to sit a shot ahead of Micheluzzi - who double-bogeyed the 17th in his 73 - Japan's Ryo Hisatsune, Dane Nicolai Højgaard, Frenchman Pierre Pineau and American Gunner Wiebe.
