Eugenio Chacarra is in the box seat to claim his second DP World Tour title of the season after reaching 17 under par on Saturday at the DS Automobiles 83° Open d’Italia.
The Spaniard, who began four shots behind 36-hole leader Joaquín Niemann, delivered an impressive third round of 65 to surge into a two-stroke lead at Circolo Golf Torino.
Related: Joaquin Niemann leads by two in Turin
The 26-year-old opened his day with a birdie before being forced to wait until the 7th for his next; the first of three which saw him go out in 32 and apply the pressure at the top.
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A bogey at the 13th did minimal damage, as the two-time DP World Tour winner remained calm in hot conditions to pick up another three shots on his way home, and finish six under par for the day.
Chacarra, currently sixth on the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World, will now target a second title in three weeks, having triumphed at the KLM Open in Amsterdam earlier this month.
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Chasing him will be Niemann, who carded an even par 71 to settle in a share of second alongside Englishman Matt Wallace at 15 under par.
The Chilean began his third round in style, making five birdies and just the one bogey on his front nine to create some breathing room on moving day. Three consecutive dropped shots after the turn tightened the race up, as did another at the 15th, before a birdie-bogey finish cancelled out any ground he had hoped to regain.
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Wallace continued his efficient week, following up a record-breaking second round 62 with a 67. The 36-year-old made four birdies on his front nine and two on his back, a bogey on either side of his card not enough to halt his momentum in Turin.
The trio will now come together in the final group on Sunday, with the format and tee times adjusted due to predicted afternoon thunderstorms.
Behind them will be Germany’s Nicolai von Dellinghausen and Spain’s Ángel Ayora, who sit in a share of fourth at 13 under, and sixth-place South African Dylan Frittelli.
Dane Jeff Winther, having equalled the course record set by Wallace, and Scotland’s Richie Ramsay are a further two shots back at 11 under par, tied for seventh.
Player quotes
Eugenio Chacarra: Itwas good. It wasn’t playing easy. The afternoon, the winds were changing a lot. Obviously the greens, some of them receive, some of them bounce. With the heat that we’re having these days, it’s hard for the course to not be wet, so it’s just a challenge, you know. I think I did a great job staying patient like I did all week. I think just playing my game, control what I can control, have a good, positive attitude and just go from there.
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I have enough with myself that if I need to focus on Joaquín or what other guys are doing, I think I’ll be crazy. So no, I think that’s one of the things I work a lot with my team and with my mental coach, just control what I can control, and that’s my game, my decisions, my swings, and that’s what I’m focusing on and what I’m doing and trying to do my best. I can’t control what Joaquín or Matt or Ángel (Ayora) – I mean, there’s a lot of great guys coming behind me. And on this course, you can go really low like we’ve seen. Tomorrow with the early tee time, greens are going to be a little more receptive and better also. So obviously people can go low – and not even those, there’s a lot of guys behind that played low this morning and they can have another low one tomorrow. So there’s a lot of golf left. I need to just focus on what I can control, and hopefully I can perform as good as well and have a chance down the stretch.
I’m just trying to play as good as I can, control what can I control, and see where that takes me, you know. I already proved myself. I’m one of the best players in the world when I’m playing my game and when I’m playing good, so that’s why I come every week, I try to win every tournament I play. Obviously, there are tremendous players behind me and in the field every week here on the DP World Tour, so it’s not always easy. But just giving me chances and learning and getting better, that’s what I want to get to. To get to the PGA TOUR and be one of the best players in the world, you need to be in these positions and try to be as comfortable as possible, and that’s what I’m trying, you know. Trying to have fun, execute the shots, and control what I can control.
