Tight leaderboard at the Crown Australian Open: Neergard-Petersen leads, McIlroy and Wiesberger tied at T24.
Rasmus Neergard-Petersen continues to lead after the third round of the Crown Australian Open on the DP World Tour, held in the greater Melbourne area. The Dane followed up his impressive 66 from the previous day with another strong round of 67, finishing five under par. Despite a few mistakes on both the front and back nine, his seven birdies and two bogeys kept him atop the leaderboard at 14-under-par overall. Three players are hot on his heels at 12-under-par.
South Korea’s Si Woo Kim impressed with a 65 (-6) in the third round, though a bogey on the front nine prevented him from catching Neergard-Petersen. Australia’s Cam Smith and Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz also carded 66s and are tied with Kim for second place. Smith recorded five birdies and an eagle but gave back two strokes with bogeys on holes 6 and 18. Ortiz played a bogey-free round, highlighted by an eagle on the front nine and three birdies on the back nine.
McIlroy and Wiesberger tied at T24
Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger is currently tied for 24th with world number two Rory McIlroy. Wiesberger shot a 70 (-1) on Saturday, recovering from two early bogeys with four birdies on the back nine, though he added another bogey late in the round. McIlroy also sits at five-under-par overall. Despite a solid 68 on day three, the Northern Irishman is still feeling the effects of his opening 72. His third round featured a clean back nine with four birdies, but a double bogey on the second hole and a bogey on the front nine held him back.
Other DACH players struggle
Switzerland’s Joel Girrbach and Germany’s Yannik Paul will need strong final rounds to climb the leaderboard. Girrbach shot an even-par 71 and is tied for 53rd. Paul, however, had a rough day with a 77 (+6), including a triple bogey on hole 4 and three more bogeys on the back nine, placing him at T71.