Richie Ramsay now T4, only two off pace in China Open as three share lead   EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS

With no player having won the Volvo China Open twice and no Chinese player having won a European Tour title on home soil, Alex Levy, Li Hao-tong and Wu Ashun will not lack for motivation when they head into the final day in a tie for the lead with former Ryder Cup star David Howell.  Aberdeen's Richie Ramsay, on the back of a third-round 70 has moved up to joint fourth, only two off the pace on 210. Craig Lee had a 72 for 217. The locals at Tomson Shanghai Pudong Golf Club, in the world’s most populous city, will have high hopes of a home win after playing partners Li and Wu both posted rounds of 69 to climb to eight under par alongside Howell, who had earlier signed for a sparkling 68. Howell, whose last win came in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship 18 months ago, followed six straight pars with birdies at the seventh and eighth before holing a curling 40-footer on the tenth for a third gain of the day. Good approach play set up further birdies on the 11th and 13th holes, but he dropped his only shot of the day at the next after pitching into a bunker. Defending champion Levy had threatened to run away with the tournament after reeling off four successive birdies from the first hole, but a lacklustre back nine of 38 saw him drop back into a share of first place. Key Quotes Alex Levy: “It was the perfect start for me. But after that I got a little bit nervous, because I haven’t played well for three months now, so I haven’t been in this position for a while. So it’s nice to be back at the top of the leaderboard, but I have to get used to it again. “I got a little bit frustrated on the back nine, because I didn’t miss many shots and yet I still came back in two over. So it was a bit strange really, because I thought I actually played quite well. It was a shame, but it’s positive that I was still hitting good shots.” David Howell: “It was a very nice day for me. The conditions weren’t too testing, although the wind got up a little bit on the back nine. But I felt like there was a score to be had out there, and I adapted to the conditions much better than I did yesterday, when I struggled with the comparative softness of the course. But I knew what to expect today, and took advantage. “It’s a real test but I’ve really enjoyed the test so far. If you get yourself out of position, it can be very difficult to save par. But conversely, if you do find the fairway from the tee, there are definitely some birdies to be had.” THIRD-ROUND SCOREBOARD par 216 (3x72) 208 D Howell (Eng) 68 72 68, W Ashun (Chn) 73 66 69, A Levy (Fra) 69 68 71, L Hao-Tong (Chn) 71 68 69,  210 R Ramsay  (Sco) 72 68 70, M Carlsson  (Swe) 73 72 65, S Benson (Eng) 75 69 66, P Meesawat  (Tha) 72 70 68  211 T Pieters  (Bel) 70 71 70  212 S Strange (Aus) 71 72 69, J Quesne  (Fra) 69 67 76, E Grillo (Arg) 73 70 69, M Manassero (Ita) 71 68 73  213 R Fisher (Eng) 76 69 68, P Uihlein  (USA) 70 67 76, B Hebert  (Fra) 70 76 67, R Wattel  (Fra) 72 67 74, J Morrison  (Eng) 73 70 70, R Green (Aus) 73 71 69, T Hatton (Eng) 75 69 69  214 M Hendry (Nzl) 68 73 73, B Dredge (Wal) 68 74 72, M Ilonen  (Fin) 73 71 70, R Jacquelin (Fra) 74 68 72  215 J Edfors (Swe) 74 72 69, S Kjeldsen (Den) 75 71 69, A Noren  (Swe) 73 70 72, M Griffin (Aus) 75 68 72, F Aguilar (Chi) 80 65 70, R Karlsson (Swe) 75 70 70, N Cullen (Aus) 72 73 70, L Bjerregaard  (Den) 75 70 70, T Pilkadaris (Aus) 72 73 70, I Park (SKor) 70 74 71, M Nixon (Eng) 73 70 72, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 71 68 76,  216 G Havret  (Fra) 76 68 72, A Johnston (Eng) 72 70 74, J Lando Casanova  (Fra) 71 68 77, R Paratore (Ita) 74 71 71, B An (SKor) 72 68 76, R Gibson (Aus) 71 71 74, D Horsey (Eng) 72 73 71, G Bourdy (Fra) 74 72 70, T Lee (SKor) 74 71 71, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 73 69 74  217 S Kapur (Ind) 70 72 75, M Foster (Eng) 72 71 74, C Lee (Sco) 70 75 72, T Fisher Jnr (RSA) 75 71 71  218 C Wood  (Eng) 73 70 75, M Kieffer (Ger) 73 72 73, M Fraser (Aus) 69 76 73, J Lee (Aus) 72 74 72, R Rock (Eng) 73 73 72, M Korhonen (Fin) 71 72 75, O Wilson (Eng) 70 76 72  220 D Drysdale (Sco) 75 69 76, S Hend (Aus) 71 73 76, Z Jin (Chn) 72 70 78, J Carlsson (Swe) 70 75 75  221 Y Tian (Chn) 75 69 77, R Carter (USA) 71 73 77,  223 S Hansen (Den) 75 70 78, S Jeffress (Aus) 72 74 77, E Espana (Fra) 74 72 77,  225 Z Xin-Jun (Chn) 75 71 79   - Ends -