JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Dan Bradbury maintained his one-shot lead after Sami Valimaki of Finland double-bogeyed the 18th hole Saturday at the Joburg Open.
The Englishman’s 4-under 67 at Houghton Golf Club kept him in the lead for a third straight day as he seeks a wire-to-wire victory and his first European tour title.
The 24-year-old Valimaki (66) looked poised to overtake Bradbury before getting into trouble in the trees at the par-4 18th.
Valimaki had birdied the 13th to pull even with Bradbury and both birdied the 14th to reach 18-under overall. The Englishman then bogeyed the par-3 16th to hand Valimaki the lead, albeit briefly.
The 23-year-old Bradbury mixed six birdies with two bogeys to finish the third round at 17-under 196 overall.
Valimaki, looking for his second European tour title, is alone in second. Daniel Van Tonder (67) of South Africa is three shots back in third place. Two other South Africans — Christiaan Bezuidenhout (69) and Casey Jarvis (71) — are both five shots off the lead.
The Joburg Open is the first tournament of the European tour’s 2023 season, with two more events in South Africa in December.
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