Frazar moves one ahead of Els

Harrison Frazar finished his third round with a flourish, birdying the last three holes to shoot a four-under-par 66 and grab a one-stroke lead at the Hawaiian Open on Saturday.

Frazar carded a 14-under total of 196, one stroke better than defending champion Ernie Els of South Africa (66) in calm conditions at the Waialae Country Club.

Davis Love III, who fired a course record 60 at the seaside course in 1994, returned a 63 to join Frank Lickliter II (65) in third place on 198.

Paul Azinger, the 1992 and 2000 champion, hit his second consecutive 66 to finish on 11-under 199 alongside overnight leader Steve Allan of Australia (70).

Frazar has never won on the PGA Tour but has twice led going into the final round, most recently at the Phoenix Open 12 months ago when he had a one-shot cushion over John Huston and Tim Petrovic.

That tournament did not end well for Frazar as his lead was swallowed up by Fiji's Vijay Singh, who made five birdies in six early holes and went on to lift the trophy.

"I think I learned my lesson there that you can't sit back and watch what somebody is doing," Frazar told reporters.

"You've got to play and you've got to attack and you kind of need to set a number in mind based on what the conditions are tomorrow (Sunday) and what you see early in the round."

Frazar, who has twice before tied for second place, made five birdies in the last 12 holes on Saturday, including his late hat-trick.

He believes he will be helped by playing alongside Els on Sunday. "He's very, what's the word, he's a very calming presence," Frazar said.

"If I can just kind of follow into the rhythm that he sets...he's been there a heck of a lot more times than I have and I would be foolish to not pay attention to what he's doing.

"I think it's going to be pretty easy playing with Ernie. I look at it as not only a treat and an honour but an advantage."

Els said: "I think I've played myself into contention and I've really kind of put my head down and started grinding a bit this week, especially today.

"But I've got a chance and I've got to go and try and take my chance when I get it."

Els's win here 12 months ago was his last on the PGA Tour in 2003, although he did have five more worldwide triumphs.

If he fails to finish first on Sunday it will be an entire year that the world number three will have gone without a victory on the tour.

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