Martin Couvra will go in search of his second DP World Tour victory in just four starts as he takes a one-stroke lead into the final round of the Italian Open.
Related: Angel Ayora moves ahead at Italian Open halfway stage
The Frenchman, who is playing in his rookie season after graduating from the HotelPlanner Tour, earned his first win at the Turkish Airlines Open last month, and he carded a three under par round of 67 to move one shot clear at Argentario Golf Club.
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The 22-year-old was one shot clear with two holes to play but dropped a shot at the par three 17th to move back into a share of the lead. However, he recovered superbly after setting up a seven-foot birdie opportunity on the last, holing the putt to move to 11 under par.
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He sits one stroke ahead of Spaniard Eugenio Chacarra, who also won his maiden DP World Tour title earlier this season at the Hero Indian Open.
Chacarra carded a four under par round of 66 to reach second place on ten under par, which he shares with Adrien Saddier of France, who carded a three under 67.
Saddier is chasing his first victory on the DP World Tour and is making his 200th career start this week in Italy.
In a share of fourth on nine under par are Andreas Halvorsen of Norway and Spain’s Angel Ayora, and in sixth place on eight under are Frenchman Clément Sordet, who carded an eight under par course record of 62, Scotland’s Calum Hill and Alex Fitzpatrick of England.
Player Quotes
Martin Couvra: “I’m really proud about my 18th, because I was really tired on the last few holes. It’s quite difficult with the heat. The course is so tough, so we needed to be very concentrated. I’m happy about the 18th.
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“There’s a lot of great players here, so you have to keep going. It’s only one shot. I’ll try to do my best on the last 18, and that’s it.
“It’s going to be a great experience because it’s my first time being in this position. I’m really proud to be in this position and I hope to be there tomorrow.”
Eugenio Chacarra: “It was tricky out there. The wind was switching what felt like every ten seconds. I felt like on the front nine I hit it downwind, into the wind, in the opposite direction. A tough time on the front nine. On hole number nine I thought I hit a perfect shot and I hit it 20 yards over, hole eight the same thing. It was tricky but I think I did a good job staying patient and I hit some really good shots down the stretch. I had a birdie look every hole, which was nice. I’m happy with the result and happy to be in contention.”
