South Africa’s Shaun Norris in action at the PGA ZOZO Championship golf tournament at the Narashino Country Club in Inzai, Chiba prefecture on October 22, 2021 FILE - South Africa’s Shaun Norris in action at the PGA ZOZO Championship golf tournament at the Narashino Country Club in Inzai, Chiba prefecture on October 22, 2021. Photo: Takashi Aoyama/AFP
Johannesburg — Shaun Norris remained on track for a maiden DP World Tour victory as a third-round 67 handed him a four-shot lead heading into the final day of the 2022 Steyn City Championship.
The South African had entered the weekend with a three-shot advantage after a blistering 64-62 start and while he could not quite maintain that pace, he moved to 23 under with just one bogey all week.
Countryman Dean Burmester was his nearest challenger after a 66, one shot clear of German Matti Schmid and two ahead of Dane Joachim B. Hansen and Swede Sebastian Soderberg.
Norris came through the Qualifying School in 2010 and while he is making his 114th start this week, he has yet to truly establish himself on the DP World Tour while having huge success elsewhere.
A truly international player, he has six wins on the Japan Golf Tour - including last year's Japan Open Golf Championship - to go with another win on the Asian Tour and two on the Sunshine Tour.
He welcomed his second child - a daughter named Riley-Grace - into the world two weeks ago and revealed that if he got over the line, he would be dedicating worldwide win number ten to her.
"It would be special," he said. "I haven't won in South Africa on home ground for 11 years so this would be a special one.
"With baby girl getting born a couple of weeks ago this one's for her so it would be nice."
He added: "I've been doing a lot of work off the tee and a lot of putting so I'm glad it's starting to show."
Norris did well to save par at the first but that was the only wobble he had on the front nine, holing from five feet at the second to extend his lead to four shots.
Burmester made a fast start, putting his approach to three feet at the first, 15 feet at the second, chipping in at the third and holing from six feet at the fourth for four birdies.
But a smart up-and-down on the third and a 20-foot putt from the fringe at the sixth kept Norris four shots ahead, before a stunning approach to two feet at the seventh saw him lead by five.
Burmester had dropped a shot at the fifth but he got up and down at the sixth and holed a 15-foot left-to-righter at the ninth to trim the gap at the turn.
He got an unlucky lie under a tree at the par-five tenth but recovered to make his birdie, and another up-and-down from the sand at the driveable 11th saw the lead cut to two.
A bogey on the 12th from Burmester and a two-putt birdie from Norris at the tenth saw the gap go back to four but the leader dropped his first shot of the week on the 11th.
He then holed a 30-footer on the 13th to get to 23 under and, with both of the leading challengers parring their way home, took a four-shot lead into the final round.
Schmid birdied the third, fourth, sixth, seventh and ninth to turn in 31 and when he holed from 30 feet on the tenth for an eagle, he was right in the mix.
The reigning Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year found water on the next but hit back on the 12th before dropping another shot on the 15th, with an up-and-down from the sand on the 16th and an 18-footer on the 17th seeing him sign for a 64.
Hansen made seven birdies and two bogeys in his 67, a score matched by Soderberg, who holed a bunker shot for an eagle on the 16th to go with four birdies and a bogey.
Frenchman Romain Langasque was at 16 under, one clear of Finn Mikko Korhonen and two ahead of home favourites Oliver Bekker and James Hart du Preez.
DP World Tour
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