MADRID – Mateo Pavón maintained his lead at the Spanish Open by entering the final round with a two-stroke lead on Saturday.
No. 3 seed Jon Rahm (67) is tied for 34th and nine shots behind as he fights to defend his title that he won last year when Pavon finished second.
Pavon shot a 5-under 66 after making six birdies and a bogey at Club de Campo Vela in Madrid to double his overall lead at the end of the third round. The Frenchman was in the lead with 63 since the opening and is now 16 after 54 holes.
Pavon, 30, is looking for his first DP World Tour victory.
“What I learned (from last year) is that Jon Rahm is hard to beat. He beat me last year by six shots and I think I had a great week,” Pavone said. “This week I’m trying to be myself. I think I have family who come from Spain, and my grandfather was also from Madrid, so everything is a bit the same and I’m happy to be here.
Englishman Nathan Kimsey (65) is Pavon’s closest competitor for second place. The Spaniard Alfredo Garcia Heredia (68 years old), the French Mike Lorenzo Vera (68 years old) and Romain Langesque (66 years old) as well as the South African Xander Lombard (65 years old) are all four behind Pavon in a four-way tie for third place.
Rahm has won three of the last four Spanish Open tournaments, including last year to match Seve Ballesteros’ three titles at the event. He is playing in his first tournament since helping Europe beat the United States in the Ryder Cup two weeks ago at Marco Simone in Italy.
Rahm said: “(Tomorrow) I’m going to go out, play and score as few goals as possible. That’s the least I can ask for. “Let’s see if I can have a good Sunday and make it fun.” »
2023-10-15 03:19:04
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