Van de Velde closes in on glory
Jean van de Velde is on the verge of his first win in nearly five years after building a six-stroke lead heading into the final round of the Ageas Hong Kong PGA Championship.
The Frenchman, 44, who started the day in a share of the lead with Asian Tour regular Guido van der Walk, showed his class over the Old Course at the Hong Kong Golf Club by firing a blemish-free 66.
Seventeen-year-old Hong Kong amateur Liu Lok-tin lies in a share of second place, alongside Dutchman Van der Walk and local stalwart Derek Fung after battling to a level-par 71.
'I only had two hours' sleep because of jetlag but the key was not letting shots get away. I'm really looking forward to the final round,' said Van de Velde, who famously blew a three-shot lead at the last hole before succumbing in a play-off at the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie.
He has not won on any tour since his victory at the 2006 Madeira Islands Open - and is not getting ahead of himself with 18 holes of the North Course at the Jockey Club Kau Sai Chau to play. 'I haven't played much since 2008 and my goal this week was to go out and enjoy myself,' the two-time European Tour winner said. 'I've been around long enough to know that even with a big lead you can take nothing for granted.'
Van de Velde, who was partnered in the second round with Liu, was full of praise for the student, who finished strong after making a triple-bogey seven at the short par-four second hole. 'He's a massive hitter,' said Van de Velde, who was giving up 20 yards to Liu off the tee. 'I was really impressed with the way he fought back after making the big mistake. He has a wonderful future ahead of him.'
Some 39 players made the cut for the final round of the HK$300,000 tournament.
