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| -15 M Fitzpatrick (Eng); -13 L Aaberg (Swe), A Bjork (Swe), C Syme (Sco); -12 A Fitzpatrick (Eng), N Hoejgaard (Den) |
| Selected others: -11 E Pepperell (Eng); -9 J Smith (Eng); -6 S Jamieson (Sco) |
| Full leaderboard |
Matt Fitzpatrick moved two shots clear in the lead of the European Masters as he closes in on a Ryder Cup place.
The Englishman carded a third round 67 at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland to move to 15 under par.
His three-under-par round included seven birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey.
“I was really pleased to make sure I was in the mix come Sunday because it could have unravelled,” said Fitzpatrick.
The 29-year-old will replace Tommy Fleetwood, who is not playing in the event, in one of the two remaining automatic qualifying places for the Ryder Cup with a finish of sixth or better in Switzerland.
Joint seventh would also be enough for Fitzpatrick, but only if he was tied with one other player.
A win would also mean Fitzpatrick would equal Seve Ballesteros’ record for most wins at the tournament.
“I feel like there’s a lot of things for me this week – I can wrap up Ryder Cup, I can match Seve’s record and win here three times,” added Fitzpatrick.
“A win here is always special and my third would be even better.”
Swedes Ludvig Aberg (66) and Alexander Bjork (68), along with Scotland’s Connor Syme (65), are on 13 under.
Fitzpatrick’s brother, Alex, is on 12 under following a 68 in the third round.
