New Zealander Michael Hendry remained firmly in contention to win the Token Homemate Cup for the second time following another solid display in the penultimate stage on Saturday.
The 43-year-old carded a three-under-par 68 to lift him to within one shot of the lead held jointly by Ryo Ishikawa and Rikuya Hoshino, who fired 64 and 66 respectively to move to 14-under-par 199.
Related: Yusaku Hosono turns a new page with record 61
A day after setting a new course record of 61 at the Token Tado Country Club en route to taking a commanding four-shot lead at the halfway stage, Hosono was swiftly brought down to earth no thanks to a disastrous three-hole-stretch from seventh to ninth holes where he dropped six shots.
Hosono eventually signed for a 76 for the title race to be thrown wide open with as many as 25 players separated by just five shots.
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American Han Lee and Song Young-han of South Korea were among five players trailing closely at just two shots back in a tie for fourth after both carded matching 67s for 201.
Despite dropping his first three bogeys of the week, Hendry was pleased with how things panned out for him.
Hendry can certainly have no complaints about it as he managed to offset them with six birdies, including at the last, to earn a genuine shot at his second victory in the tournament.
“Happy with my position, certainly didn’t play as well as I did the first two days. it was a bit scrappy but I managed to turn it around and shoot a good score,” said Hendry, who won the Token Homemate Cup in 2015 for his breakthrough win on JGTO.
“It was a little bit tricky today with the wind. It just made the club selection tougher.”
“You’d always prefer to be on top (of the leaderboard), it gives you a bit of leeway.
“As long as I can play well there’s no reason why I can’t make it a really good week.”
Lee battled back valiantly from a rough start that saw him bogey twice in the three opening holes to keep his title hopes alive.
The American responded to those early setbacks with three quick birdies at the fourth, fifth and seventh holes before finishing with a flourish by gaining four more shots from the last five holes to trade with a third blemish on the 16th.
“Made lots of putts, most of them being 10 to 12 footers for birdies, I’m pretty happy,” said Lee.
“The greens were getting a little bit firmer. Before the tournament started, it was raining heavily in Nagoya on Sunday, so they really did a good job of getting the greens ready for the tournament.
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Being in a good position heading into the season-opener finale once again, Hoshino is hoping to make amends after finishing third last year.
“Last year, I was hoping to fight for the title but I ended up third. I will try my best to win the first event of the year,” vowed Hoshino, who made eight birdies against a lone bogey.
“In the last five years, I have never failed to win at least one title in each season. It’s definitely a big goal for me to make it six on the trot and I hope to accomplish it early in the season!”
Ishikawa was delighted to get into position to win his maiden Token Homemate Cup title after sparkling with a round containing an eagle, six birdies and three bogeys.
The “Bashful Prince” may boast 18 JGTO titles in his career, but he has never won the season-opening event before.
“I’m happy to be playing in the final group on the final day,” said Ishikawa, who finished runner-up to Atomu Shigenaga in 2018.
“I think the other two players (Hoshino and Hendry) are in their best shape, so I feel nervous. I’m going to just enjoy the competition and see how it goes.”
