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China's Zhang leads at Guilin Championship

chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2018-06-09 20:31
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Zhang Jin. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

China's Zhang Jin shot a 5-under 67 to move to 16-under on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead into the final round of the Guilin Championship, the fifth event on this year's PGA TOUR Series-China.

Zhang, 22, is looking for his first pro title in his fourth year on the tour, having recorded top 10 finishes in 2015 and 2016 and shared 11th place at last month's Changsha Championship.

Order of Merit leader Charlie Saxon, playing in the final group with Zhang, also shot 67 and moved to 15-under, one ahead of fellow American Paul Imondi (69). The trio will play together in the final group for a second straight day.

Sweden Oskar Arvidsson (68) is fourth at 12-under, one ahead of Canada's Justin Shin (66), England's Alex Belt (68) and Korea's Junh Woo-jin (70). Malaysia's Arie Irawan (72) double-bogeyed the par-4 18th to fall back to 10-under in a share of eighth with China's Zhang Huilin (68), a two-time winner on the Tour.

Zhang, whose father is caddying for him, took the outright lead with a birdie on the final hole, which Saxon parred. The Chinese earlier birdied Nos. 4, 9, 12, 13 and 16, and bogeyed the fifth.

"I was very relaxed today, and I played a great round," said Zhang, who turned pro in October 2014. "I finished with some good putts and I made a 9-foot birdie on 16 and a 12-foot birdie on 18, which was nice and a great way to finish."

Zhang started the day sharing the lead with Imondi after both shot 64 on Friday and is now hoping he can stay calm as he leads a pro event outright for the first time.

"I want to win, but on this course, many good players can shoot 7-under or 8-under," Zhang said. "What I need to do is try my best, focus on my game and keep calm on the course. It's going to come down to my mental game."

Saxon, second on the Order of Merit in 2016 and a Web.com Tour player last year, recovered from a bogey on the par-5 second by racking up birdies at Nos. 3, 8, 10, 14, 16 and 17 – the latter proving a surprise.

"I thought I hit it in the lake – I finished the swing with one hand," said Saxon of his approach shot at the par-4. "I thought the wind was going to take it right and it turned out perfect. I hit it to within one inch so you have to take those and run with them."

The 25-year-old will now attempt to win his second title in three Tour events, having also won twice in 2016.

"I've been in this position before and I'm comfortable in it. I know I can perform here," Saxon said. "Hopefully with some good golf, I'll be able to lift another trophy."

Imondi, 33, is looking for his first win on the Tour, having tied for second at the 2016 Cadillac Championship in Chengdu with Shin, six shots behind current Web.com Tour player Alex Kang.

The Orange County native shot six birdies against three bogeys, and said he'll need to improve on the final day to give himself a chance of victory.

"I didn't take advantage of my opportunities today," said Imondi, who finished 18th on the 2016 Order of Merit.

"I played the par-4s okay and made a few birdies, which kept me under par for the round, but I'm going to need to clean it up for tomorrow. If I can clean a few things up, I'm confident I can get a low one in."

Every tournament on this year's PGA TOUR Series-China offers RMB 1.5 million, a 25-percent increase over purse levels from 2016.

The PGA TOUR established PGA TOUR Series-China in 2014 as its third international developmental tour, following in the footsteps of PGA TOUR Latinoamerica and the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Since its inception, PGA TOUR Series-China players have received Official World Golf Ranking points for top finishes at official tournaments.

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