Matt Wallace held a four-shot lead heading into the final round of the Omega European Masters, moving a step closer to ending his six-year winless streak on the DP World Tour.
Wallace, who had gone bogey-free in the first two days of play, shot a three-over 73 in blustery conditions on Saturday at Crans-sur-Siers Golf Club, dropping to 11 under but maintaining a huge advantage over nearest challenger Alfredo Garcia-Heredia.
Andrew “Beef” Johnson finished tied for third on the final day with Henrik Noland, while Edoardo Molinari shot a 69 on the day to move the Ryder Cup vice-captain into fifth place with Alex Fitzpatrick.
Wallace won a PGA Tour title last season, but his most recent DP World Tour title was at the 2018 Made in Denmark, and a win this week would put him at the top of the qualifying field for next year’s Ryder Cup.
How Wallace stayed ahead in Switzerland
Wallace failed to save par from 10 feet on the second hole, lost another shot on the fourth and made bogey on the par-3 eighth hole, leaving him at three over for the day and cutting his overnight lead to one shot.
The Englishman responded with a 25-foot birdie on the par-5 ninth, but had to hole from eight feet on the next hole to settle for bogey, though he was still three shots ahead when he converted from 15 feet for par on the 13th.
Wallace took advantage of his chance by two-putting from long range on the par-5 14th hole, but made bogey on the next par-5 to drop to 11 under. Wallace then failed to save par on the 17th hole, but holed out on the 18th hole to end an eventful day with a birdie.
“Where do I begin?” Wallace told Sky Sports When asked to assess the difficulty of the conditions. “Brutally, tough. Really tough. I felt good hitting shots, hitting my zones – from the looks of it, they were the wrong zones. Some holes, like 17, were probably not playable at all.
“I said it was cold and windy the other day, but it was crazy (today), just insane. The greens were great, but the speeds were great.”
Britain's Jordan Smith finished nine shots off the lead with a 77, including a two-stroke penalty for an errant drop on the par-5 12th. That turned his bogey six into a triple-bogey eight, and Smith also lost four shots on his final three holes.
Matt Fitzpatrick was aiming for his third win of the tournament this week, but he bogeyed his first three holes and ended up tied for 65th with a 5-over 75.
Who will win the Omega European Masters? Watch the final live on Sky Sports Golf on Sunday at 11:30am. Watch the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and more with NOW.