At a place like Leopard Creek, Ryan van Velzen will be happy that he is the hunter rather than the hunted as he had a second consecutive bogey-free round on Saturday in the third round of the Alfred Dunhill Championship.
The Sunshine Tour Order of Merit winner from last season eased into his work after last dropping a shot 42 holes ago around the challenging layout, and his five-under-par 67 in the third round sees him nestled nicely, just two shots off the lead as he heads into a final round date with leader Marcus Kinhult of Sweden.
Kinhult held onto his lead by the end of a difficult third round: In temperatures far cooler than the previous days, the Swede put together a solid 69 to head the field on 14-under-par.
“I’m hitting my driver so well at the moment, and I think I’ve gone two rounds without a bogey now. I’m staying away from flags I can’t go for. I’m playing very nicely,” Van Velzen said of his round which was highlighted by an eagle from a bunker short of the green on the famed 13th.
“I just hit it so straight, and I putted so nicely, so I’m very happy with how it’s going,” he added of a round which included four birdies on the front nine in a fast start, and one more on the back nine immediately after his eagle.
Despite the cooler weather, it was a far from easy day for the majority of those near the top of the leaderboard. Charl Schwartzel saw his challenge falter with a 74 that was a tale of two nines, including a front nine of 42 and a back nine of 32. He ended the day on five-under-par overall. And Dean Burmester fought hard for a 70 – including two double bogeys – to keep himself in the tournament at 10-under-par.
For Van Velzen, allowing himself to dream of a win so early in his first season on the DP World Tour his Order of Merit win earned him is something to relish: “A win would mean the world,” he said. “It’s a childhood dream of mine, as it is for any young South African golfer, to win a co-sanctioned event with the DP World Tour, especially here at Leopard Creek. I’m going to go into the park now, go check out some animals and then get some rest.”
The final round will not make him do anything which hasn’t worked well for him so far. “I’ll hit driver most holes, just hit it straight down the middle. I won’t attack flags, just make it safely onto the greens and try and make as many putts as I can.”
