Iván Cantero (-6) signed the card as the clubhouse leader on Saturday at the BMW Australian PGA Championship. The Asturian golfer delivered a score of 69 strokes in the morning, with four birdies and two bogeys, creating an excellent chance of victory for this Sunday in the third and final round. Right after finishing, despite ending with a painful bogey, he had no one ahead of him in the tournament. Eventually, later on, Matthew Southgate (-7) moved one stroke ahead, regardless of what might happen with the afternoon players. Precisely, what happens in the coming hours will determine whether Cantero’s chance is more or less favourable. What is certain is that there will be a chance.
Cantero is very well positioned in the first tournament of the DP World Tour season, and yet the feeling is somewhat bittersweet. It’s one of those times when the player feels they can’t afford another stroke. He has once again displayed great golf from tee to green, especially solid with the driver. The main frustration is not having been able to take advantage of any of the three par 5s on the course, despite going for the green in two on all occasions. In fact, his score today on those holes has been +1, and over the first two rounds, he has an even par total. From that perspective, even the -6 feels like little.
The final bogey on the 18th hole also hurt. Once again, Iván hit a great drive and had a wedge in hand to aim for the green. Neither Cantero nor his caddie, Adolfo Juan Luna, could figure out what went wrong with that shot. The shot was perfect, but it seems the wind played a trick on them. He hit the shot as he wanted, yet it went past the green. Most likely, the tent deflected the shot, which is the most probable explanation.
In any case, the golfer from Llanes is pleased with the start of the season. Let’s not forget that just three weeks ago, he was saving his card at the last minute in Korea, and now he’s creating an opportunity to win right off the bat. It’s clear that things have been going very well in recent weeks.
What seems evident is that the tournament’s outcome is going to be very exciting, as the leaderboard is very tight. In fact, by the end of the morning session, there was only a five-stroke margin between the tournament leader and the last player to make the cut. Additionally, important players were positioning themselves at the top, such as Cameron Smith (-7), with holes still to play, or Cam Davis (-6), Victor Perez (-5), and Lucas Herbert (-5) with their rounds finished. Furthermore, Fred Biondi, the young Brazilian golfer who signed for 69 strokes and is at -4, deserves a lot of credit.
