Sean Crocker‘s chip-in eagle on the par-5 18th hole gave him a two-stroke lead heading into the final round at the Hero Open.
The American, bidding for his first European tour title, finished at 3-under 69 on Saturday to keep Jens Dantorp of Sweden two shots behind after three rounds at Fairmont St. Andrews.
Crocker, who started the day with a one-shot lead, moved to 18 under for the tournament as he goes for a wire-to-wire win.
“That was a nice little bonus on 18. I was trying to get it up and down for [birdie] but to see that ball drop was pretty cool,” Crocker said.
He ran into trouble on the par-4 13th when he was in the thick rough after two shots and near a wall. He took a drop and settled for a double bogey.
He thought about playing it, though.
“Every time I got near that ball I just could see bad things happening,” he said. “We made the right decision there by taking the drop.”
Dantorp is alone in second after a bogey-free 69.
Adrian Otaegui (64) and David Law (65) are both three shots off the lead.
“It’s nice to have a little bit of room but I also know those gaps can be closed very quickly,” Crocker said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve held something shiny. It would be a nice little present.”