Chachoengsao, Thailand, 09-11-2019
SSP Chawrasia leaps into the joint lead with a 68 in round three of the Thailand Open; Shubhankar Sharma slips to tied 17th in Turkey
Indian stalwart SSP Chawrasia made his return to the Thai Country Club after 12 years a memorable one by grabbing a share of the lead with Australia’s Andrew Martin following the penultimate round of the Asian Tour's Thailand Open on Saturday.
The playing partners, who started the day trailing by one, posted matching three-under-par 68s to seize a one-shot advantage over local amateur Natthaphat Harnchokchaiskul with their three-day total of 10-under-par 203s at the Thai Country Club.
The 41-year-old Chawrasia, a four-time winner on the European Tour, is chasing for his seventh victory on the Asian Tour this week. He is playing in his fifth start on Tour this season.
SSP, who sits in 64th place on the current Order of Merit, needs a good showing this week to try and break into the top-60 at the end of the season to keep his card for 2020.
Chawrasia said, "It’s been 12 long years since I last played here at the Thai Country Club. The course still feels similar to back then except that the trees have grown much taller. It was nice to be back here and be in a share of the lead heading into the final round.
"I played good today. It was nice to shoot three birdies in the last five holes. I’m happy with it. I missed a couple of putts on the front nine but it got better on the back. I have been playing pretty consistently for the past three rounds.
"The course is playing the same today. It’s still windy. But I am happy to put myself in a share of the lead now. I am looking forward to tomorrow. I’ll try my best and let’s see. It’s nice to back playing in Asia. It always feels like home and I am more comfortable.
"This is my last year of winner’s exemption on the Asian Tour so a good result tomorrow will help a lot."
Indians Shiv Kapur (71) and Ajeetesh Sandhu (73) were both in tied 11th at five-under-208.
Elsewhere, at the European Tour's Turkish Airlines Open in Antalya, Turkey, Shubhankar Sharma dropped six spots to tied 17th after his third round of one-under-71. His total read 10-under-206 as he trailed the lead by eight shots.
Source: Asian Tour
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