Abraham Ancer moved a step closer to his first LIV Golf individual win, carding an 8-under 62 on Saturday in Hong Kong to enter the final round with a five-stroke lead.
Ancer, of Mexico, stands at 15-under 125 after two rounds at Hong Kong Golf Club. Trailing him at 10-under are Eugenio Chacarra of Spain (66 on Saturday) and Harold Varner III (66), with Cameron Smith of Australia (64), Jon Rahm of Spain (64) and Henrik Stenson of Sweden (65) tied for fourth, six shots back at 9-under.
Dean Burmester of South Africa, the co-leader with Ancer after Friday’s first round, shot a 69 to fall into a six-way tie for seventh at 8-under.
Ancer’s best finish on the upstart circuit came last season when he tied for third at LIV Golf Bedminster.
“I’m not going to be thinking about leading the tournament,” Ancer said. “I’m just going to go out there and stay in the present, go about my routine, and just keep doing the same thing. Try to focus on the shot that I’ve got in front of me.”
Ancer has yet to make a bogey in Hong Kong, and Saturday’s 62 was the lowest round he has shot in 68 rounds on the LIV circuit. He had four straight birdies on holes 11 through 14.
“I did what I wanted to do — keep it in the fairway and give myself chances,” Ancer said. “I feel like I hit the ball really nicely today and rolled it really good as well. No complaints.”
While a 5-shot lead might sound insurmountable, his competitors aren’t ready to concede to Ancer.
“The most important thing is not worry about Abe,” said Varner, seeking his second LIV Golf win. “That’s how you lose. I think I’ve played enough golf to know that the best thing is to just give myself as many looks as possible and try to just stay within myself.”
“Obviously Abe is playing tremendous golf,” Chacarra said. “Five shots is a lot of shots; I’m not going to lie. But you never know.”
In team play, captain Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC, aided by strong rounds from Ancer and Chacarra, stands at 28-under, three shots ahead of Smith’s Rippers GC and six up on captain Martin Kaymer’s Cleeks GC.
–Field Level Media