Home favourite Lucas Bjerregaard will head into the final round of the Danish Golf Championship with a two-shot lead after recording 10 birdies and no bogeys in 28 holes on day three at the Lubbock Golf Resort.
Two-time DP World Tour champion Bjerregard was forced to leave the course before the turn due to high winds that halted play on Friday evening, but he was immediately in action when the second round resumed on Saturday morning.
He made five birdies on the back nine, including three starting on the 10th hole, to hold a two-shot lead at the midway stage.
The Danish player continued his good form after the third round began. After grabbing a birdie at the opening, he scored four more in the five holes on the back nine and finally shot a sparkling 66, 12 under par.
Romain Langasque was his nearest challenger at 10 under, with Danish amateur Jacob Skov Olesen alone in third, one shot behind.
South Africa's Thomas Aiken shot a round of 68, including four birdies and a bogey, to tie for 11th at six under, while his compatriots Oliver Bekker and JJ Senekal were third at four under and three under, respectively.
Bjerregard played well in the third round, hitting a 20-foot birdie on the first green to get to eight under.
He then shot eight straight pars to lose the lead, while his opponents took full advantage of favorable scoring conditions.
But, just as he had done earlier in the day, Bjerregard showed his best form at the start of the final nine to reclaim the top spot.
He had some luck on the 10th hole, clipping branches with his approach shot before making birdie.
And he made two consecutive approaches from 7 feet on the 11th hole to cut the gap to Langasque to one shot.
Bjerregard then made consecutive birdies on the 12th hole and was tied for the lead at 12 under.
When France's Langasque lost his first shot of the day on the 14th hole, Bjerregard found himself alone atop the leaderboard.
Bjerregaard extended his lead to two shots with a 4-foot birdie on the long 14th hole and then shot even par to stay ahead.
“A bogey-free round is never a bad thing,” he said. “Especially considering what we've done here. I'm very happy. I played well.
“I was a little bit up and down in the middle of the match but still kept playing well, and then I had some birdies at the start of the back nine, so that was good.”
Bjerregard has had success on the DP World Tour, winning the Portugal Masters in 2017 and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship a year later, but he is currently making his mark on the European Challenge Tour.
Sunday is certainly a great opportunity for him, but the 33-year-old vowed to continue taking it day by day.
“I think I’m in a different position this year than I’ve been in the past. I’m not in a great position on the Challenge Tour, so I’ve been playing in invitational and top 10 and stuff like that.
“So I haven't been able to plan much and just take it day by day. I think this has really worked out for me so I'll try it again tomorrow.”
Photograph: Octavio Passos/Getty Images
