Anirban Lahiri made a lot of birdies but also gave away a few shots on the third day of the windswept Bermuda Championship. Yet, he stayed within striking distance of the leaders in Southampton, Berrmuda.

On a day when winds gusted up to 40 kmph, former Asian Tour No. 1 Lahiri shot two-under 69 and was Tied 11, despite a closing bogey in the second round. Lahiri is now six-under and four behind leader Doc Redman (67), who moved to 10-under. Redman is one clear of Ryan Armour (70), Wyndham Clark (70) and Kramer Hickok (69).

Also in contention is another former Asian Tour No 1, Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat (69) at seven-under and in Tied 8.

‘I feel confident’

Lahiri, who started and ended the third day with a bogey, also had a double bogey on the ninth. However, he has been making a lot of birdies. In the third round, Lahiri made six birdies, taking his total to 15, the most this week.

He admitted: “I played quite well but managed to make enough mistakes. Felt like I was a bit loose and gave away two or three shots that I should not have. I’m happy with the way I struck the ball, especially on the back nine, which was playing harder today. Disappointed to finish with a bogey again. It leaves a bad taste in the mouth but that’s okay.”

He said: “It was a bit of a grind but it was not as tough as yesterday.” The fact that he is making a lot of birdies gave him confidence, and he felt optimistic as he continues his resurgence in form, with conditions are expected to be calmer and better on the final day.

Lahiri is playing his sixth successive season on the PGA Tour, with the runner-up finish at the 2017 Memorial Tournament being his career-best. He has not won a title worldwide since his win at home at the Hero Indian Open, after which he has been playing on the PGA Tour.

“Tomorrow, my goal will be to keep a clean card, and if I can minimise my errors, I feel I’m playing well enough to make a bunch of birdies and hopefully down the stretch give myself a chance. Everything after that is a bonus. Hopefully we can make some magic,” said Lahiri.

“Conditions will be better for scoring (in the final round). It’ll be interesting with the two-tee start as it won’t be much of a difference in terms of the course conditions as opposed to a one tee start. Tomorrow, everyone will play in a two-hour window and the conditions will be the same for everyone. I’m feeling good, confident,” he added.

Kiradech fought hard and ended his day with a closing birdie from two feet after rifling a nine-iron approach to within two feet of the pin. The 31-year-old Thai star said, “I have stuck to my game plan the last two rounds and played some solid golf, rolled the ball quite well and got up and down a few times except for 15 and 16, which I’m upset about. However, it was nice to finish with a birdie.”

Redman who is the 2017 US Amateur champion, was at 10-under 203.

Another shot behind were Matt Jones (66), Brian Gay (67) and Ollie Schniederjans (69). Jones was bogey-free in the third round, which to him was as impressive as any of his five birdies.

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