Aman Raj lying T13 in Penang Championship

Asian Tour Release

June 3, 2016: Australian Adam Blyth placed himself in clear sight of the PGM Penang Championship title after carding a third round five-under-par 67 to lead by one shot at the Penang Golf Club on Friday.

India’s Aman Raj also shot 67 to get within eight shots of the overall leader at six under 210.

The 34-year-old Blyth, playing on a sponsor’s invite this week, rolled in a 35-footer for eagle on third before adding four birdies against a lone bogey to sit atop the leaderboard on 14-under-par 202 total at the RM200,000 (approximately US$46,600) event.

American John Michael O’Toole, who broke the course record earlier with an opening 64, returned with a 66 to share second place with Thailand’s Wisut Artjanawat (67) at the PGM Penang Championship, which is the Tour’s second stop in Penang this season.

Overnight leader Nick Sherwood of the United States posted a 70 to slip to fourth place on 204 while Order of Merit leader Pavit Tangkamolprasert of Thailand, who is chasing for a record sixth victory on the region’s burgeoning Tour, sits a further shot back in fifth following a 68.

Trailing by one, Blyth started his day with two straight pars before holing out an eagle on third and going on to birdie all the par-threes for the first time in his career. His only bogey came on the par-four seventh.

“I got off to a great start with the eagle on third. I also birdied all the par-threes which I thought was pretty cool. My girlfriend, Nicole, is doing a fantastic job, keeping me focused but very relaxed. We had a great time out there and we are loving Penang too,” said the Australian.

“I played really solid today. I am really looking forward to playing another 18 holes out there. I have a great game plan so I just have to stick to it and worry about myself,” added Blyth, who had played on the Asian Tour for close to 10 years before switching his focus to his domestic circuit two years ago.

The ADT, which was inaugurated in 2010 as the gateway to the premier Asian Tour, will reward the top-five finishers on the Order of Merit at the end of this season with Asian Tour cards for 2017.

The winner of the PGM Penang Championship will receive six Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points while the top six players and ties will also earn points based on a sliding scale.

Leading third round scores:
202 – Adam BLYTH (AUS) 65 70 67
203 – John Michael O’TOOLE (USA) 64 73 66, Wisut ARTJANAWAT (THA) 71 65 67
204 – Nick SHERWOOD (USA) 66 68 70
205 – Pavit TANGKAMOLPRASERT (THA) 70 67 68
206 – Pasamet POGAMNERD (THA) 67 72 67, Oscar ZETTERWALL (SWE) 69 68 69
207 – M. Sasidaran (MAS) 69 70 68
208 – Blake SNYDER (USA) 71 69 68, Christopher CANNON (ENG) 67 74 67, K P LIN (TPE) 67 71 70
209 – Danny CHIA (MAS) 69 73 67
210 – Josh SALAH (USA) 72 69 69, Johannes VEERMAN (USA) 71 74 65, Aman RAJ (IND) 73 70 67, Suradit YONGCHAROENCHAI (THA) 66 76 68
211 – Itthipat BURANATANYARAT (THA) 72 69 70, George GANDRANATA (INA) 73 71 67, Shahizul AHMAD (MAS) 71 71 69