Home hero Sergio Garcia will take a one-shot lead into the final round of the Andalucia Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio Garcia Foundation.
The Spaniard has won five of his 13 European Tour titles in his home country - including the last staging of this here at Real Club Valderrama in 2011 - and a third-round 68 moved him to eight under on Saturday.
The 37 year old was handed Honorary Life Membership of the European Tour in recognition of his Masters Tournament win in April on Friday night and less than 24 hours later he was once again delighting a bumper home crowd.
England's Daniel Brooks entered the week knowing he needed a top-eight finish to have a chance of keeping his playing privileges for next season and he fired a brilliant 64 to sit in second, a shot clear of Dutchman Joost Luiten.
Welshman Jamie Donaldson and Scotland's Scott Jamieson were then at five under, two shots clear of Australian Wade Ormsby.
They may have to produce something special to deny Garcia a third win of the season, however, as he looks to close the gap on Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex leader Tommy Fleetwood.
"It was pretty solid," he said. "I'm going to go out there tomorrow and try to post another under par round and see what happens. Good rounds are possible there but they have to be spot on.
"It's still a long way tomorrow to come so we can't get too much ahead of ourselves."
Luiten began the day with a one-shot lead at six under but Garcia soon leapfrogged him as he put his approach to five feet on the second and then hit a smart tee-shot into the par three third.
Brooks' round was already well under way and after turning in 30 with birdies on the second, third, fifth, eighth and ninth, he made it three in a row on the tenth to get to six under.
A tap-in on the par five 11th then had him in a share of top spot and a Luiten birdie on the fourth had him back in the lead as Garcia got in bunker trouble on the fifth and then dropped another shot on the sixth.
It's still a long way tomorrow to come so we can't get too much ahead of ourselves - Sergio Garcia
Brooks then put his tee-shot on the par three 15th to tap-in range and when Luiten dropped a shot on the seventh, the 30 year old had a two-shot lead.
Brooks bogeyed the next after putting his tee-shot into the trees but bounced back with a birdie on the 17th as Garcia made a strong recovery.
He played a beautiful bunker shot to birdie the eighth and then made another gain from the fringe on the 11th and, with Brooks closing with a bogey after a poor chip, the lead was shared.
A ten-footer on the 14th moved Garcia to eight under but he bogeyed the next after a poor tee-shot and when Jamieson holed a bunker shot on the 15th to get into red numbers for the day, he was just a shot off the lead.
That was soon two as Garcia got onto the green at the par five 17th in two and took the same amount of putts to get back to eight under.
Luiten had birdies on the 11th and 17th and bogeys on the ninth and 12th in his last 11 holes while Jamieson bogeyed the last.
A top eight finish could get Donaldson into the Access List top ten and stop him having to go to Qualifying School or use his Career Money List exemption next season and a 68 put him in an excellent position.
The Welshman birdied the first but gave the shot back on the seventh before birdieing the ninth and tenth. Another dropped shot followed on the 14th but he made a gain on the 16th and holed a long putt on the last.
Ormsby - at 106th in the Race to Dubai - is still not certain of keeping his card for next season but he is well placed on the Access List and a 67 with five birdies and a bogey got him to three under.
Portuguese Ricardo Gouveia entered the week less than 500 points outside the top ten on the Access List and a 72 left him at two under, while Anders Hansen needs a win this week and he was at the same mark after a 71.
American Julian Suri recorded the only bogey-free round of the week so far to also sit at two under alongside Shane Lowry and Robert Rock.
