Kajang [SELANGOR]: Muhd Wafiyuddin Abdul Manaf made a moving day charge to snatch a share of the 54-hole lead at the Professional Golf Association of Malaysia (PGAM) Players’ Championship presented by Maybank on Thursday.

The 25-year-old fired a blistering eight-birdie round of 67 to haul himself alongside Amir Nazrin Jailani on five-under 211 at the Impian Golf & Country Club.

Overnight leader Amir needed a birdie on the penultimate hole to turn in a 72 to stay the course in his bid for a maiden professional title.

A flawless back-nine of four birdies pushed Sabahan Brandon Lau (68) into joint third alongside veteran Md Rashid Ismail, whose solid one-under 71 included an eagle on the 17th.

The pair are just a stroke back in what is setting up to be a pulsating final round in the RM200,000 tournament.

Completing the top-five at two-under-par are the trio of Kemarol Baharin (67), Wilson Choo (70) and Daeng Abdul Rahman Abdul Aziz (72).

Five back at the start of the day, Wafiyuddin got off on the wrong footing by bogeying his opening two holes. The Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) standout regained his composure to make the turn on level-par before rolling in a 15-foot birdie on the 10th that opened the floodgates in a flawless back nine display.

“I stayed positive despite dropping two shots early on. Kept it simple and my putter kept me in the game on the front nine. The birdie on 10th really sparked my confidence – I knew I was up for something special and to return with five birdies on these grainy greens is quite an accomplishment,” said Wafiyuddin.

With the days of balancing his studies and playing time behind him, Wafiyuddin is enjoying his best run of the burgeoning domestic circuit. With two top-five finishes already this year, the decorated former national is eager to taste success on the professional ranks.

“I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Putting an expectation [to win] is equivalent to putting more pressure on myself. I just want to enjoy my game tomorrow. I think I just have to trust the lines and make those putts. If I can do that tomorrow, I’ll have every chance of lifting the trophy,” he added.

Amir was disappointed not to emulate his opening round magic but took it in his stride as he looks to join the winning circle in his rookie year.

“The last two days has been about grinding out a result. Just stayed patient and I was happy with that birdie at 17 because it kept me in the mix. Tomorrow is a brand new day and undoubtedly, there will be some pressure. It’s going to be an interesting contest,” shared the 19-year-old, who had two birdies and two bogeys on his card.

Leading third round scores (Par-72)
211 – Muhd Wafiyuddin Abdul Manaf 71-73-67, Amir Nazrin Jailani 68-71-72
212 – Brandon Lau 72-72-68, Md Rashid Ismail 71-70-71
214 – Kemarol Baharin 72-75-67, Wilson Choo 71-73-70, Daeng Abdul Rahman Abdul Aziz 69-73-72
215 – Akhmal Tarmizee Nazari 74-73-68, Airil Rizman Zahari 72-71-72
217 – Lam Yu Shuen 72-71-74
218 – Farid Rashid 73-76-69, Mohd Nazri Mohd Zain 74-73-71, Kenneth De Silva 81-65-72, Jeremiah Kim Leun Kwang 73-71-74