THE WIND wasn’t delighting any competitors on the third day of the 2012 Emirates Australian Open but John Senden managed best to take a two stroke lead into the final day.
Firm putting surfaces at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney weren’t helping either but Senden, who also led after the first round, carded a 2-under 70 to separate himself from Justin Rose.
It must have been beneficial being tall and lanky because the Englishman also shot a 70 to finish alone in second on 5-under.
In third place was the evergreen Peter Senior (69) on 4-under along with Kieran Pratt (70) and Matthew Jones (69).
Senden said he got off to a “sluggish start” with two bogeys but then a birdie on 6 and especially an eagle on 11 really got his round going.
“The last two holes were almost on the edge [of playability because of the wind and dry conditions],” he said.
Senden finished runner-up to Greg Chalmers last year and wasn’t taking anything for granted.
“Winning the national open is always a dream but there is a long way to go,” he said.
2012 Emirates Australian Open Leaderboard