Joe Dean and Grant Forrest Share Lead at Open de España
Joe Dean of England and Grant Forrest of Scotland share the lead at 13-under 200 following the third round of the Open de España presented by Madrid. Dean carded a 6-under 65 on Saturday after making eight birdies in 15 holes and closing with a 30-foot birdie putt, while Forrest posted a 67 to join him at the top.
The leading pair sits one shot ahead of Victor Perez, Joel Girrbach and Jacob Skov Olesen going into the final round. Meanwhile, DP World Tour contenders Ludvig Åberg and Shane Lowry each carded 4-under 67s to reach 5-under par and T17, leaving them with an opportunity to mount a charge on Sunday.
Dean Navigates Late Blemishes to Retain Share of Lead
Dean was brilliant for the majority of his third round before encountering trouble near the end of the day. On the par-4 16th hole, he went bunker-to-bunker, came up short of the green, chipped too strongly and missed a 15-foot putt for a double bogey. He then went long on the par-3 17th to card another bogey.
He salvaged his round by draining a long putt on the final green. It gave a little bit of hope after those previous two holes,
Dean said. But nothing’s guaranteed in this game and it only takes a slight lapse in concentration or a bad shot and before you know it you’re chasing. It’s nice to finish with a birdie on the last. We’ll go again and see what happens.
Chasing Pack and Race to Dubai Implications
Dean captured his first European title six weeks ago at the Husqvarna British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo. A victory on Sunday would push him into the top 10 in the Race to Dubai and practically assure the 32-year-old a PGA Tour card for 2027.
Elsewhere on the leaderboard, Eugenio Chacarra shot a 70 and sits five shots behind the leaders while playing through the pain of a foot injury. Chacarra is attempting to overtake American Patrick Reed for the lead in the Race to Dubai, though Reed missed the 36-hole cut on Friday.