2006 Taiwan Open - Round 3: Lin eagles his way into third round lead

Home favourite Lin Wen-tang sensationally eagled his last hole to grab a two-shot lead after the third round of the US$300,000 Taiwan Open on Saturday.

The in-form Lin holed a chip from off the green at the par five 18th to sign for a four-under-par 68 at Sunrise Golf and Country Club, putting himself in position to win a maiden Asian Tour title.

His 10-under-par 206 total was clear of overnight leader Gary Rusnak of the United States, who slipped back after a battling 72. Lin Keng-chi of Chinese Taipei, Asia's number one in 1995, added to the day's excitement with a hole-in-one en route to a 70 for joint third place on 209.

Last year's winner Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand and England's Yasin Ali also signed for identical 70s to stand on 209. A further stroke back were Korean teenager Park Jun-won, local hero Wang Ter-chang, who both fired superb 67s, and Scotsman Simon Yates, who returned a 70.

Wen-tang, who lost in a play-off at the Crowne Plaza Open in China two months ago, had the crowds in delirium with his last-hole heroics. "I never thought the chip would go in the hole as it is a tough green. I only wanted to get it close to the pin for a birdie. It was very exciting for me to see it disappear into the cup," said Wen-tang, who was in the top-10 at last week's Mercuries Taiwan Masters.

He turned in 36 with a bogey against a birdie before rallying late in the round with birdies on the 14th and 15th holes before the eagle at the last. "I had birdie chances from eight feet on six other occasions but missed them. I hope I can play well again tomorrow and I will stick to my game plan," said Wen-tang.

Rusnak swapped three birdies against just as many bogeys as he slipped two shots behind the new leader. Presently ranked 65th on the UBS Order of Merit, a win for the American will secure his card for next season and earn him a place at the HSBC Champions in Shanghai next month.

Keng-chi has played primarily in Japan since winning Asia's Order of Merit more than a decade ago but the elusive first Taiwan Open has so far eluded him. He brightened his chances with a magical ace on the par three second hole, with a six iron, and won a round-the-world air ticket from China Airlines.

"It was nice but I wasn't sure if the hole in one was good for me as I bogeyed the third and fifth hole after that and also had a double bogey on the seventh," said Keng-chi. However, three birdies over his last 10 holes saw him stay within touching distance of his compatriot.

Thaworn, currently 14th on the UBS Order of Merit, kept alive his hopes of successfully retaining one of the four titles he won in 2005 with three birdies against a lone bogey. In typical Thaworn fashion, he played down his chances.

"This course is very difficult with the winds blowing and the greens being so quick. However, I am playing well so far this week and I feel lucky. I drove the ball well today and putted nicely.

"I was studying Wen-tang's putting lines today which helped a lot. I'm not thinking about winning yet as it's very difficult to win out here," said Thaworn.

Leading third round scores
206 - Lin Wen-tang (TPE) 70-68-68
208 - Gary Rusnak (USA) 70-66-72
209 - Thaworn Wiratchant (THA) 70-69-70, Lin Keng-chi (TPE) 69-70-70, Yasin Ali (ENG) 72-67-70
210 - Park Jun-won (KOR) 72-71-67, Wang Ter-chang (TPE) 71-72-67, Simon Yates (SCO) 70-71-69
211 - Tsai Chi-huang (TPE) 68-77-66, Rick Gibson (CAN) 71-70-70, Kane Webber (AUS) 67-71-73, Lee Sung (KOR) 71-68-72, Pat Giles (AUS) 71-66-74
212 - Lu Tze-Shyan (TPE) 74-71-67, Iain Steel (MAS) 73-71-68, Clay Devers (USA) 73-71-68
213 - Tony Carolan (AUS) 75-72-66, Chris Rodgers (ENG) 71-72-70, Hsieh Tung-shu (TPE) 72-70-71, Brad Iles (NZL) 72-69-72, Angelo Que (PHI) 69-70-74
214 - Juvic Pagunsan (PHI) 75-69-70, Ari Savolainen (FIN) 74-71-69, Chen Yuan-chi (TPE) 71-70-73
215 - Adam Groom (AUS) 70-77-68, Jochen Lupprian (GER) 69-77-69, Ted Oh (KOR) 71-75-69, Chang Tse-peng (TPE) 72-73-70, Chinarat Phadungsil (THA) 72-71-72, Richard Moir (AUS) 69-72-74
216 - Richard Lee (NZL) 73-74-69, Jason King (AUS) 72-74-70, Chapchai Nirat (THA) 71-73-72, Lee Cho-chuan (TPE) 74-68-74, James Stewart (HKG) 72-69-75, Anthony Brown (AUS) 70-70-76

October 7, 2006

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