Matthew Jordan and Adrian Meronk will tomorrow go in search of their maiden DP World Tour titles after claiming a share of the third round lead at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.
The duo, who both graduated from the European Challenge Tour in 2019, battled the high winds at Doha Golf Club to reel in overnight leader Pablo Larrazábal and open a one stroke lead on eight under par, one shot clear of Finland’s Kalle Samooja in third on seven under par.
England’s Jordan posted a two under par round of 70 which included a stunning five under par back nine, while Poland’s Meronk birdied two of the final four holes to card a level par round of 72 and join Jordan at the top of the leaderboard. Should Meronk go on to claim victory tomorrow, he would become the first player from Poland to win on the DP World Tour.
Samooja, playing in the ninth group of the day, took advantage of his early tee time and put himself into contention for his first DP World Tour title with a six under par round of 66, the low round of day three in Doha, before the wind picked up in the afternoon and made scoring difficult for the later groups.
Spaniard Larrazábal eventually carded a three over par round of 75 but remains just two shots off the lead in a tie for fourth place on six under par alongside countryman Adrian Otaegui and South Africa’s Wilco Nienaber. Four players share seventh place on five under par, including Scotland’s Ewen Ferguson, Chase Hanna of the United States, Italy’s Edoardo Molinari and Denmark’s Niklas Nørgaard Møller.
The stage is set for a thrilling final day at Doha Golf Club, with 18 players within four shots of the lead.
Player quotes
Adrian Meronk: “I’m very pleased to be honest. It was super tough. I knew it was going to be tough, it was a grinding day but I’m very satisfied with the result and looking forward to tomorrow.
“You have to stay patient. You’re going to hit some bad shots, some really bad shots, and you just have to accept it and stay patient.
“It comes with patience. I was very patient. I knew I was going to make some bogeys but I just kept going, kept hitting good shots and I’m glad I did. I’m excited, it’s going to be a great day. Let’s have some fun.”
Matthew Jordan: “I didn’t know it was for the lead. It wasn’t that difficult of a bunker shot to be honest because it was downslope before and upslope after so I just had to make sure I didn’t thin it. I was happy to be where I was at that point in time.
“It’s really hard. I always find putting is so difficult because I don’t know whether to play for the wind or leave it alone so it’s just guesswork. The greens are firm, you’re just predicting what’s going to come. You don’t really know, it’s just educated guessing really.
“I find the front nine is probably tougher, it has less chances anyway. I wasn’t doing too much wrong; I couldn’t get up and down, I couldn’t hit fairways, it just wasn’t quite happening but I knew I wasn’t too far off. I just kept going because you have to.
“It was stressful. How can it not be, it’s just hard work. The simple shots become really tough so it was stressful but very rewarding when you do well.”
Kalle Samooja: “It was almost the perfect round. I just lost my ball on the second and made a double but otherwise I played really, really good golf today.
“Apparently I need some tougher conditions. It gets me to focus better and I’ve done a good job with my caddie Max this week. I think I’ve got the most out of my game this week compared to the last two weeks.
“There were a few good putts but I hit pretty well as well. I had some good chances – it’s not easy to hit it close out there so you need to be patient and use the par fives well.
“I hope it will give me a good chance to fight for the win tomorrow. It’s looking like that so another one, 66 tomorrow, and I think we’ll have a chance.”
Adrián Otaegui: “I think in general I try to control the trajectory. When I strike the ball well, it goes where I want and I’m just trying to focus on where I want to land the ball. I like the challenge as well. I like a bit of suffering on the course. I quite like those conditions.
“This is why we practice, to be in contention and have the chance to win tournaments. I’ve been feeling good on the golf course, I’ve been playing well, so I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Wilco Nienaber: “I’m proud of the way I came back but I gave myself opportunities at the end and didn’t take them so I’m pretty angry with myself at the moment, but tomorrow is a new day.
“It’s tough. I really struggled with my eyesight today. I found it tough to see, it was pretty blurry the whole day and I just tried to do the same as I jave been the last two days. I will try to do the same tomorrow and hopefully it’s better.
“It’s more mental than anything else, I would think. After my start, if I had given up I would’ve been out of this tournament but I think I’m still in with a chance for tomorrow. Mental game was really crucial today.”
