Dustin Johnson is in pole position to make history on Sunday after opening up a six-shot lead heading into the final round of the WGC-HSBC Champions.
The World No 1 already has five World Golf Championships to his name – including this one in 2013 – and is the only man to have won all four of the events.
Another victory at Sheshan International Golf Club would see him enter the history books again as he bids to become the first player to win three in a single season, after his triumphs at the WGC-Mexico Championship and WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
A third-round 68 on Saturday moved him to 17-under with fellow American Brooks Koepka then his nearest challenger.
Swede Henrik Stenson was leading the European Tour challenge at ten-under, one clear of England’s Justin Rose and American Brian Harman.
‘I’m not going to change anything,’ said Johnson. ‘I feel like I’ve got a good game plan for the golf course. I’m going to play it just like I did today.
‘I think the wind is going to be out of the same direction. Might be blowing a little bit harder.
‘But as far as tee-shots and approaches to the green, I’m going to try to do exactly what I did today.”
Johnson entered the day with a one-shot lead, but made just his third bogey of the week on the first, and with Koepka holing from just off the edge of the green, the reigning US Open champion was back in the lead that he had held for most of round two.
The leading duo took advantage of the par-five second, with Koepka holing from eight feet on the next for a birdie-birdie-birdie start and two-shot advantage.
Johnson would not let him get away, however, and holed a 15-footer on the fourth and got up and down from a nasty lie on the seventh to tie the lead.
There was then a huge swing on the par-five eighth as Johnson put his second shot left, but got up and down for an unlikely birdie as Koepka recorded an eight. The four-time Challenge Tour winner lost his ball in the trees off the tee, put his fourth into more trees to the left of the green to take another drop, and two putts meant that Johnson had a four-shot lead.
Johnson needed two attempts to get out of the bushes on the tenth and recorded a double-bogey, but Koepka also dropped a shot after getting in bunker trouble.
The 33-year-old got back on track with a birdie on the 11th, and a poor tee-shot and chip on the next from Koepka extended the lead to five, with both men then making gains on the par-five 14th and driveable 16th.
Johnson then had a chance to open up a seven-shot lead on the last as Koepka bogeyed after going in the water, but left his birdie putt short.
SA’s best remains Haydn Porteous, who followed Friday’s 74 with another on Saturday. Porteous’ round was remarkably similar to his previous 18, with four bogeys being offset by two birdies. He is in a share of 29th place – one shot better than Branden Grace (72). A further shot back is Charl Schwartzel (73), but the story of the day from a Saffa perspective was Brandon Stone.
Stone’s horror Friday – where he shot 87 thanks to a birdie-free round which included 5 double drops – was put in the memory bank he went a staggering 19 shots (and that’s with two bogeys) better on moving day.
