Forsyth holds on to two shot lead

Alastair Forsyth will go into the final round of the $1m Malaysian Open with a two-shot lead but a stuttering back nine holes has given the chasing pack hope.

The Scot has never led a European Tour event on the last day but his third round 69, following blistering opening rounds of 63 and 65, leaves him 16 under - two shots clear of Spain's Ignacio Garrido.

It could have been even better for Forsyth had he not bogeyed the last hole to complete a birdie-free final nine after a sensational front nine in which he recorded three birdies.

He said: "I've never been in this position before so how I'll handle it I don't really know.

"I've won tournaments at a lower level but I've never led going into the last round of the European Tour."

Garrido's entertaining round featured seven birdies and three bogeys in humid conditions at the 71-par Royal Selangor Golf Club.

He said: "I had a few flyers and it's hard to control the shots even if you miss the fairways by just a few metres."

Another Spaniard, Miguel Angel Martin, and Australia's Stephen Leaney are a further shot back at 13 under in a tie for third.

Leaney, one of five players to shoot a 66, is confident of making a charge on the final day of the event, which is co-sanctioned between the European and Asian PGA Tours.

"Alastair is going for his first win. It is always hard to win your first tournament. I've been four or five ahead before and lost so I know you can do it."

Last year's runner-up Padraig Harrington of Ireland, Welshman Ian Woosnam, Argentina's Eduardo Romero and Swede Richard Johnson matched Leaney's 66, one short of the day's best by Jorge Berendt, another Argentine.

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