Late surge for Dunne as Johnson moves six clear
Dustin Johnson plays his shot from the sixth tee during the third round of the WGC HSBC Champions at Sheshan International Golf Club. Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images
Paul Dunne birdied two of his last three holes to move up ten spots to tied 12th with a round to go in the WGC-HSBC Champions in China.
The Greystones man was level for the day standing on the 16th tee after following a birdie at the seventh with a bogey at the 10th.
But he then birdied the 16th and 18th to post a third round 70 to sit just outside the top-10 on six-under-par.
He's 11 strokes behind world No 1 Dustin Johnson, who is aiming to make history after opening up a commanding six-shot lead over fellow American Brooks Koepka at Sheshan International Golf Club in Shanghai.
Johnson already has five World Golf Championships to his name - including this one in 2013 - and is the only man to have won all four of the events.
Another victory on Sunday would see him enter the history books again as he bids to become the first player to win three in a single season after his triumphs at the WGC-Mexico Championship and WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play earlier this year.
A third-round 68 on Saturday moved him to 17-under-par with Koepka his nearest challenger at 11 under.
Sweden’s Henrik Stenson is one shot further back and leads the European Tour charge, with England's Justin Rose at nine under par alongside American Brian Harman.
Spain’s Rafa Cabrera Bello and American pair Peter Uihlein and Kyle Stanley are one further back at eight-under-par.
Johnson entered the day with a one-shot lead but made just his third bogey of the week on the first and, with Koepka holing from just off the edge of the green, the reigning US Open champion was back in the lead he had held for most of round two.
There was then a huge swing on the par-five eighth as Johnson put his second shot left but got up and down for an unlikely birdie as Koepka recorded an eight.
The four-time Challenge Tour winner lost his ball in the trees off the tee, put his fourth into more trees to the left of the green to take another drop, and two putts meant that Johnson had a four-shot lead.
Johnson needed two attempts to get out of the bushes on the tenth and recorded a double-bogey but Koepka also dropped a shot after getting in bunker trouble.
The 33-year-old got back on track with a birdie on the 11th and a poor tee-shot and chip on the next from Koepka extended the lead to five, with both men then making gains on the par five 14th and driveable 16th.
Johnson then had a chance to open up a seven-shot lead on the last as Koepka bogeyed after going in the water but left his birdie putt short.
Stenson bogeyed the eighth to turn in 37 but found his rhythm on the back nine, making birdies on the 11th, 14th, 16th and 17th to give himself a chance on Sunday.
Dustin Johnson
“Today was a tough day with the wind. Felt like I played really, really well. You know, I had a double-bogey on 10 but I actually hit a really good drive right down the right side of the fairway and landed on the cart path and went straight right into the bushes.
“But other than that, it was a really solid day. I hit a lot of good drives and a lot of good iron shots. Especially with the windy conditions. And yeah, tomorrow, going in, I'm not going to change anything. Same game plan. You know, play the golf course just how I've been playing it.
“Well, these are big events, some of our biggest events we have on tour. Obviously the best players in the world are here.
“These are golf tournaments that I obviously always want to put myself in position to win, which I'm in a good position going into tomorrow. But I'm still going to have to go out and play a really solid round if I want to get it done.”
Henrik Stenson
“It's a tough day out there. It was blowing pretty hard. I think the forecast is for possibly stronger winds tomorrow. It was a good rehearsal for tomorrow's task, then.
“I hit a lot of good shots out there. Got some things both technically and mentally that I'm working on and I think I did that very well today. You know, yeah, I hit some really good ones, and when I didn't, I kept it in play and saved myself. It was nice to make that par putt up the last there and not finish with a bogey.
“My game plan is going to be the same. I've got a game plan how to play my best or what I think is my best on this golf course and I'm going to stick to that. It's been working pretty good so far.
"But if Dustin keeps on playing the way that he's done this week, I think it's going to be a one-man show tomorrow. But you never know, tough winds, and this golf course has a couple of holes where you certainly can have a number. It's never over until it's over.”
Peter Uihlein
“It was solid. I didn't feel like I was overly stressed out. I kind of made a mess of nine for my only bogey and then made a nice par putt on 12. Other than that, I didn't feel like I put myself in that many terrible positions where it was like an awesome up-and-down. So it was okay.
“It's already a tough golf course but yeah, it made it tougher; the way the wind was blowing, it was definitely tricky.
“If it's this windy again, same thing, just go out and try to execute shots. Just try and be smart and not let things get away from me because it's that kind of golf course where there can be big numbers.”
WGC-HSBC Champions, Sheshan International Golf Club (Par 72)
199 D Johnson (USA) 68 63 68,
205 B Koepka (USA) 64 68 73,
206 H Stenson (Swe) 68 69 69,
207 B Harman (USA) 68 69 70, J Rose (Eng) 67 68 72,
208 P Uihlein (USA) 72 67 69, R Cabrera Bello (Esp) 68 70 70, K Stanley (USA) 71 68 69,
209 M Fitzpatrick (Eng) 68 69 72, T Hatton (Eng) 68 70 71, M Kuchar (USA) 67 70 72,
210 C Howell Iii (USA) 72 67 71, Paul Dunne (Irl) 67 73 70, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 65 70 75,
211 T Fleetwood (Eng) 71 70 70, P Cantlay (USA) 68 74 69, D Lipsky (USA) 69 70 72, H Ryu (Kor) 69 73 69, B Wiesberger (Aut) 71 70 70, P Saksansin (Tha) 73 70 68,
212 W Ashun (Chn) 67 72 73, G Green (Mas) 65 74 73, D Kataoka (Jpn) 71 72 69, P Casey (Eng) 71 72 69,
213 M Southgate (Eng) 68 71 74, T Finau (USA) 67 72 74, A Levy (Fra) 71 71 71, C Kim (USA) 69 72 72,
214 D Berger (USA) 68 71 75, C Reavie (USA) 69 74 71, T Olesen (Den) 72 73 69, H Porteous (RSA) 66 74 74,
215 S Chawrasia (Ind) 72 70 73, J Vegas (Ven) 70 73 72, J Day (Aus) 69 74 72, L Wenchong (Chn) 72 70 73, J Rahm (Esp) 72 74 69, R Fox (Nzl) 71 69 75, F Zanotti (Par) 73 71 71, B Grace (RSA) 74 69 72,
216 C Schwartzel (RSA) 73 70 73, A Noren (Swe) 72 72 72, J Smith (Eng) 69 73 74, H Tanihara (Jpn) 72 70 74,
217 S Hend (Aus) 71 68 78, P Mickelson (USA) 71 72 74, P Perez (USA) 72 69 76, P Khongwatmai (Tha) 69 78 70,
218 M Leishman (Aus) 71 79 68, P Reed (USA) 66 70 82, A Scott (Aus) 72 72 74,
219 M Hendry (Nzl) 73 75 71, H Swafford (USA) 70 74 75, R Ramsay (Sco) 73 71 75, L Haotong (Chn) 72 76 71, M Griffin (Aus) 68 77 74, M Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 71 71 77, R Henley (USA) 75 68 76, Z Xinjun (Chn) 71 77 71,
220 W Bryan (USA) 77 72 71, B Haas (USA) 71 73 76, F Molinari (Ita) 77 71 72, R Fisher (Eng) 77 70 73, H Matsuyama (Jpn) 74 74 72, X Schauffele (USA) 71 75 74,
221 S Kim (Kor) 71 71 79, R Sterne (RSA) 73 72 76,
222 L Glover (USA) 71 75 76, D Zecheng (Chn) 71 76 75, A Hadwin (Can) 69 74 79, L Yanwei (Chn) 72 73 77,
223 T Pieters (Bel) 75 79 69,
224 G Storm (Eng) 75 74 75,
225 A Hall (Aus) 74 71 80,
227 A Dodt (Aus) 74 79 74,
233 B Stone (RSA) 78 87 68,
236 C Yi (Chn) 74 83 79,
** S Imahira (Jpn) 72 79 DQ.
