TIGHT AT THE TOP AS TRIO LEAD BMW INTERNATIONAL IN MUNICH

 

REPORT FROM EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

After a third round delayed by heavy morning rain at the BMW International Open, the sun was shining for three players come the end of play as Ernie Els (pictured below), Alexander Levy and Alex Noren all finished tied at the top on 15 under par.

Heavy overnight rain at Golfclub München Eichenried had originally pushed tee times back by an hour, before players returned to the clubhouse in the mid-morning as the course succumbed to the elements. 

However, by lunchtime the sun was shining, and so were the players, as all of those atop the board jostled for position on moving day.

Noren was the first to post the leading total when he signed for a third round 66 thanks to five birdies in his first 11 holes, and when his only bogey came at 15, he bounced straight back with a superb eagle at the driveable par four 16th after he curled in a 25 foot putt. 

“I came off the bogey on 15, and it was a perfect distance for the 3 wood and I hit it great,” said Noren. “Marcel [Siem] hit it really close just before me, so I knew it was possible, but then I managed to hole the putt, which was great.

“I hit a lot of good shots and a few bad ones, but you always do. I managed to hole a lot of putts, so it was a little bit of a fight in the end but it was great to hole all the putts. 

“It's all about posting a good round tomorrow.  It doesn’t really matter if you’re one behind or one ahead. It’s just about tomorrow, so I’m going to do whatever I can to post a good round.”

Els is also on the same mark after a closing two putt birdie at the 18th hole put the seal on another impressive back nine from the South African, who for the second day running struggled during the first half of the round. 

A birdie at the second was countered by dropped shots at the fifth and seventh holes to fall one over par on the day, but once again he picked up shots coming home to haul himself back into top spot.

“All in all I've got to be happy,” admitted Els. “I was a little out of sorts on the greens on the front nine.  I didn’t quite get the pace of the greens as they are a little bit faster for some reason, and I kept hitting it past and then didn’t make the returns. But I made a little slight adjustment and played some proper stuff coming in. 

“I think the weather really got the guys in the morning. We had perfect conditions in the afternoon, but as I say, if it wasn’t for those three 3 putts I had, I would have had a really good score.”

Els’ playing partner on Saturday, Alexander Levy, had for much of the day outshone the reigning Open Champion, and the 22 year old Frenchman was clearly enjoying his time in the presence of one of the game’s great talents. 

Six birdies during the third round were countered by just a couple of bogeys, one of which came on the 15th hole, where he found the trees from the tee and then the thick rough; but Levy proved he is a cool customer with a strong up and down for a five on the par four, before closing with a birdie.

He said: “I played very well, so I’m very happy.  It was great for me to play with a fantastic player, and I like to play with fantastic players, so I’m very happy. 

“Today I kept my natural game and I had a very good time on the course, and I think it was a good day. I will try to do the same tomorrow and we’ll see what happens.”

Martin Kaymer is still very much in the hunt after a solid 69 under the gaze of the Munich faithful left him three adrift on 12 under par, the same score as his compatriot Marcel Siem, who would dearly love to win the title on home soil. 

Other notables include Thomas Bjorn, who moved to tied fourth after signing for a superb round of 65.

Alongside him on 14 under par is England’s Matthew Baldwin, who is also only one back of the leading trio after a 69 of his own, while defending champion Danny Willett will no doubt still harbour hopes of becoming the first man to successfully defend the BMW International Open title when he starts the final round on 12 under par.

THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72) 

201 E Els (RSA) 63 69 69, A Levy (Fra) 65 68 68, A Noren  (Swe) 64 71 66

202 M Baldwin (Eng) 64 69 69, T Björn (Den) 68 69 65

203 P Uihlein  (USA) 70 66 67

204 B Stone (RSA) 66 71 67, D Willett  (Eng) 69 65 70, J Luiten (Ned) 69 68 67, M Kaymer (Ger) 64 71 69, M Siem  (Ger) 67 68 69

205 S Garcia  (Esp) 71 69 65, D Fichardt (RSA) 70 66 69, B Wiesberger  (Aut) 66 68 71

206 R Fisher (Eng) 68 69 69, P Waring  (Eng) 66 73 67, M Nixon (Eng) 65 71 70, J Parry (Eng) 67 72 67, R Derksen (Ned) 64 72 70

207 T Fleetwood  (Eng) 66 69 72, T Van Der Walt (RSA) 70 68 69, M Jiménez (Esp) 68 67 72, B Ritthammer (Ger) 68 70 69

208 J Morrison  (Eng) 68 70 70, P Fowler (Aus) 67 71 70, P Lawrie (Irl) 67 69 72, H Stenson (Swe) 68 69 71, M Manassero (Ita) 68 69 71, R Jacquelin (Fra) 73 67 68, D Higgins (Irl) 67 71 70, O Floren  (Swe) 68 70 70, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 67 70 71

209 H Wen-Yi (Chn) 71 69 69, D Van Der Walt (RSA) 70 71 68, T Jaidee (Tha) 66 74 69

210 M Tullo (Chi) 68 69 73, A Hartø  (Den) 68 73 69, A Kaleka  (Fra) 72 68 70, G Stal  (Fra) 68 68 74, F Aguilar (Chi) 70 69 71, O Fisher  (Eng) 69 69 72, D Johnson (USA) 66 71 73, V Dubuisson  (Fra) 68 69 73

211 R McEvoy  (Eng) 68 72 71, G Bourdy (Fra) 68 73 70, R Gonzalez (Arg) 72 69 70, M Kieffer (Ger) 68 73 70, C Macaulay  (Sco) 69 68 74

212 M Carlsson  (Swe) 69 71 72, D Drysdale (Sco) 68 72 72, S Lowry  (Irl) 69 69 74, M Wiegele  (Aut) 69 69 74, S Kapur (Ind) 69 68 75, S Jamieson  (Sco) 68 70 74, J Van Zyl (RSA) 75 65 72, B Rumford (Aus) 70 68 74

213 P Widegren  (Swe) 71 70 72, A Snobeck  (Fra) 70 71 72, M Crespi  (Ita) 69 72 72, C Doak (Sco) 72 69 72, S Kjeldsen (Den) 69 72 72, J Campillo (Esp) 66 70 77, P Casey  (Eng) 71 70 72

214 S Benson (Eng) 71 67 76, R Wattel  (Fra) 67 72 75, J Lagergren (Swe) 66 73 75, J Walters (RSA) 67 73 74, M Lafeber (Ned) 70 71 73, M Korhonen (Fin) 71 69 74, M Madsen  (Den) 74 65 75, D Horsey (Eng) 68 73 73, G Orr (Sco) 73 68 73, E Goya (Arg) 66 74 74, L Gagli  (Ita) 69 71 74

215 C Paisley  (Eng) 69 72 74

216 M Warren (Sco) 72 68 76

217 R Rock (Eng) 73 68 76

218 K Broberg (Swe) 70 71 77

 

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS