Noda City, Japan: Arjun Atwal had a third successive two-under 69 to be tied 10th at the 150 million Yen (app USD 1.37million) Panasonic OPEN here today. Atwal's third round was way more eventful than the previous two. The 44-year-old veteran, with eight Asian Tour titles, three of them co-sanctioned with Europe, is also the only Indian to have won on the PGA Tour. He is now six-under 207 and four shots behind the leader, Korea's Hwang Junggon (65), who is at 10-under 203. 

 

Arjun Atwal (IND) – Third round 69 , Total 207 (-6)

 

Japanese duo of Mikumu Horikawa (63) and Hiroshi Iwata (67), and the 51-year-old Thai veteran Prayad Marksaeng (67) are tied-second at nine-under. 

 

SSP Chawrasia (73) and Gaganjeet Bhullar (77) are tied- 58th and 60th. 

 

Atwal, whose only top-10 finish since 2012 was in the Asian Tour win in Dubai in 2014, had four bogeys, six birdies and eight pars in his 69. 

 

During one stretch of five holes he alternated between three bogeys and two birdies between the fourth and eighth holes. 

 

Atwal, whose previous start was almost six weeks ago in Hero Indian Open, seemed to have shaken off the rust with three birdies between 11th and 16th and looked set for a slightly better card before the bogey on 17th.

 

Prayad Marksaeng (Tha) – Third round 67 (-4), Total 204 (-9)

 

Thai veteran Prayad Marksaeng is ready deliver the knockout punch to his closest rivals after he returned with a four-under-par 67 at the third round of the Panasonic OPEN Japan.

 

"It’s going to be an interesting battle for me tomorrow. I’m going to fight. I prefer to be trailing the leader as I can be aggressive, which has always been my style. I was playing nicely in my front-nine where I got four birdies but it started to rain when I was playing my back-nine. I made on bogey on 16 and was happy to finish the last two holes with par as the greens were getting hard to read by then." said Marksaeng. 

 

Despite trailing Korean leader Junggon Hwang by one shot with his three-day total of nine-under-par 204 at the ¥150 million (approximately US$1.37million) event, the 51-year-old knows he can overcome his one-shot disadvantage with his aggressive style of play.

 

Prayad, a multiple winner in Japan, is tied for second together with the Japanese duo of Hiroshi Iwata and Mikumu Horikawa at the Chiba Country Club.

 

Philippines’ Juvic Pagunsan, who started the day in tied-second place, slipped to a share of seventh place after his erratic form saw him sign for a 71 at the Panasonic OPEN Japan which is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO)

 

The 2011 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion is chasing his first win in Japan, having come close with a third-placed finish last week.

 

After rounds of 72 and 69, China’s Liang Wen-chong made his move with a 68 that saw him move up to tied-20^th place, six shots back of Hwang.