Kota Kaneko reclaimed his position atop the leaderboard after posting a four-under-par 66 in the penultimate round of the Kansai Open Golf Championship, which was suspended for more than three hours due to inclement weather on Saturday.
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After a promising start where he was tied for the opening round lead, the 22-year-old ended the second round four shots off the pace. But he showed his resolve to make his JGTO breakthrough with an assured performance, marking his card with five birdies and one bogey at the Hino Golf Club in Shiga Prefecture.
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Kaneko’s three-day total of 12-under-par 198 sees him head into the final round with Korea’s Ryu Hyun-Woo in pole position as the duo hold a one-shot lead over Taihei Sato (65), Tatsunori Shogenji (66) and Riki Kawamoto (67) after the trio signed for identical 199s.
While pleased with his day’s efforts, Kaneko believes there is still room for improvement, even as he tries to calm his nerves ahead of the all-important Sunday showdown.
“I’ve been getting better since the start of the season, but I’m still not in top form. But this week my putting has been going well, so I think that’s why I’m getting better scores.
“I think I’ll probably be nervous tomorrow. When I try to do something special, I usually end up being conscious of it, so I hope I can stay calm and play normally,” said Kaneko.
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Ryu, meanwhile, was delighted to reverse his usual fortunes on moving day as he aims to end his eight-year title drought.
“I usually have a bad day on the third day, but I got three birdies at the beginning. I thought I was doing well today, but my shots and putting got shaky in the back-nine. I’ll be aiming for my first win since 2017, and that’s my goal this year,” said the 43-year-old.
