Robert MacIntyre shares European Open

lead with Germany's Ritthammer

Round Three Report

Bernd Ritthammer could become the first German to win on home soil in more than a decade after moving into a share of the lead after the third round of the Porsche European Open.

The 32-year-old started the day four strokes behind Robert MacIntyre, who is enjoying a fine rookie season on the European Tour, taking advantage of the Scot’s struggles on the demanding Porsche Nord Course at Green Eagle Golf Courses in Hamburg.

The pair share the lead after rounds of 70 and 74 respectively, with both players birdieing the 18^th hole to move to nine under par, setting the stage for a thrilling final round. Ritthammer, aiming for his first victory on the European Tour, would be the first German player to win at home since Martin Kaymer achieved that feat in Munich in 2008.

MacIntyre, currently 15^th on the Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex, has two runner-up finishes to his name this season, at the Betfred British Masters and Made In Denmark presented by FREJA, and a sixth-place result at The Open. The 23-year-old is bidding for his first victory on just his 24th European Tour start.

Four-time Ryder Cup player Paul Casey is just one stroke behind in his quest to secure a 14^th European Tour title on eight under par, after a three under round of 69. The Englishman is one ahead of Pablo Larrazábal and Matthias Schwab who share fourth on seven under par. Larrazábal is no stranger to success on German soil, having won two of his four titles there.

Player Quotes

Bernd Ritthammer: “A lot of thoughts going through my head right now. It was a definitely quite an experience for me, I’m not used to being in a leader flight on the weekend at a European Tour event. Playing with Rob who I’ve known from before was great, he’s such a nice guy.

 

“I started with a shaky tee-shot and then converted a birdie, somehow. I started feeling comfortable after that. I hit some good shots and was solid on the front nine. I lost a bit of focus on the back nine and hit some weak shots. I had some bogeys which I deserved. It was tough, but the last two or three holes was good golf. I hope I can continue that tomorrow.

“I’ve been working a lot in the past year/ten years to be in a position with a chance to win. It would mean the world. It would change my situation but on the other hand I know there’s so much golf – 18 holes, a lot of very experienced players, Rob has had a great season, Paul Casey right behind me, Larrazábal and Schwab, plenty of very good golfers who have been in that position before. I’m a bit of a rookie here in this situation, but I hope I’ll cope well like I did today.”

Robert MacIntyre: “I was hoping for another round under par. Things just didn’t go my way today, I had a couple of bad lies early one – which didn’t help things. Having to bump and run a seven iron on your second hole isn’t how you want to start. I fought well – I’m going to fight until the end, it doesn’t matter where I am on the leaderboard – bottom or top. Every point counts. Today I showed my fight and to birdie the last to tie the lead was huge.

“I was getting a bit annoyed with myself, I was hitting good shots and my ball was finishing a yard off the fairway here or there. You can’t to commit to an iron shot into a tight pin when you don’t have

full control off the turf. He said I can’t keep hitting good shots and getting unlucky, he was calling it unlucky, I was calling it bad shots. He told me to keep fighting - it’s a 72-hole tournament, not a 54-hole one.”

Paul Casey: “I saw the leaderboard, but there’s a long way to go. Usually the guys who struggle on Saturdays play well on Sundays. There’s a lot of guys out here where this is a very big week for them. It’s big for me too, but I’m in a different position because I’ve been there and done that. There’s very little pressure on me. I’m the guy to beat, I’m the highest in the World Rankings of the guys in the leaderboard, but still I’ll go out, do what I did today and have a lot of fun, enjoying the golf course.”

Scores after round three:207 B Ritthammer (Ger) 71 66 70, R Macintyre (Sco) 68 65 74,
208 P Casey (Eng) 66 73 69,
209 M Schwab (Aut) 67 72 70, P Larrazábal (Esp) 70 71 68,
210 B Evans (Eng) 69 73 68,
211 G Migliozzi (Ita) 71 68 72, J Winther (Den) 72 69 70,
212 B Wiesberger (Aut) 71 69 72, A Chesters (Eng) 71 71 70, L De Jager (RSA) 72 69 71, K Johannessen (Nor) 70 71 71, N Lemke (Swe) 71 73 68,
213 R Gouveia (Por) 72 70 71, A Björk (Swe) 69 71 73, R Sterne (RSA) 75 69 69, S Gregory (Eng) 73 72 68, P Harrington (Irl) 71 74 68, R Wattel (Fra) 72 74 67,
214 S Horsfield (Eng) 75 68 71, M Lee (Aus) 73 72 69,
215 J Lagergren (Swe) 77 69 69, P Langfors (Swe) 72 73 70, S Kim (USA) 72 74 69, P Figueiredo (Por) 70 71 74, M Rottluff (Ger) 68 75 72,
216 R Karlberg (Swe) 74 71 71, T Pieters (Bel) 70 72 74, N Elvira (Esp) 71 74 71, D Foos (Ger) 74 67 75, A Saddier (Fra) 77 68 71,
217 S Manley (Wal) 72 75 70, H Leon (Chi) 73 72 72, D Fichardt (RSA) 73 69 75, L Herbert (Aus) 69 75 73, P Reed (USA) 74 72 71, L Jensen (Den) 71 73 73, G Moynihan (Irl) 74 72 71, J Campillo (Esp) 74 71 72, S Hend (Aus) 73 71 73, D Gavins (Eng) 76 70 71,
218 X Schauffele (USA) 73 69 76, R Fisher (Eng) 72 75 71, H Tanihara (Jpn) 74 72 72, A Quiros (Esp) 73 73 72, J Van Zyl (RSA) 78 69 71, P Waring (Eng) 74 72 72,
219 A Knappe (Ger) 77 67 75, O Fisher (Eng) 73 70 76, Z Lombard (RSA) 72 75 72, A Sullivan (Eng) 74 70 75,
220 K Kitayama (USA) 74 72 74, D Papadatos (Aus) 74 72 74, M Hoey (Nir) 74 71 75, M Orrin (Eng) 72 75 73, R Sabbatini (Svk) 78 69 73, M Hammer (am) (Ger) 72 75 73,
221 J McLeod (Aus) 72 74 75, H Endycott (Aus) 72 71 78, A Bland (Aus) 71 76 74, A Wu (Chn) 77 70 74, J Veerman (USA) 76 69 76, B Stow (Eng) 68 75 78, M Southgate (Eng) 74 71 76, T Merritt (USA) 77 70 74, J Kruyswijk (RSA) 75 70 76,
222 I Cantero Gutierrez (Esp) 72 74 76, J Singh Brar (Eng) 74 73 75, R Fox (Nzl) 76 71 75,
223 C Sordet (Fra) 75 72 76,