Day three digest: 2020 Oman Open

Everything you need to know from day three at Al Mouj Golf.

It was tight at the top, the Finns were flying and Luiten was eyeing double joy as day three produced a six way tie for the lead at the 2020 Oman Open.

Here is everything you need to know from Moving Day in the desert.

Leading logjam

For a long time it looked like Stephen Gallacher would hold the lead after 54 holes. Then it looked like it would be Callum Shinkwin. Gallacher dropped four shots in his last four holes, Shinkwin bogeyed the last and at the end of the day the Englishman was tied at 11 under with Rasmus Højgaard, Mikko Korhonen, Joost Luiten, Brandon Stone and Sami Valimaki in a six way tie. The last time we had one of those after 54 holes was the 2018 BMW International Open. Strap yourselves in - it could be a bumpy ride.

Luiten eyeing double delight

Luiten is a six time winner on the European Tour with the latest of those victories coming here at Al Mouj Golf. That 2018 triumph was the inaugural Oman Open and after a bogey free 67 on day three, Dutchman Luiten is feeling confident he can make it a lucky seven. "It always helps when you have won the tournament before but I think winning in general helps you go through the motions and the feeling of winning a tournament," he said. "I’m just going to enjoy it; you’ve got to enjoy the tension that comes with trying to win. I love it here and feel comfortable so I just need to make sure I play simple golf tomorrow."

Flying Finns

Valimaki is playing just his sixth European Tour event this week but he could be in line for his first win. A stunning third round 64 was the lowest round of the week so far but the 21-year-old is keeping his feet firmly on the ground. "I hit drives really good," he said. "I missed only one fairway on the last, missed one green and made some really good putts. Last year was my first pro year and I played really good. Won four times and made it onto the Challenge Tour before the Q School started. It was all so fast and now I'll just keep pushing. I'll just go to dinner, go to bed and start again tomorrow. It's good."

Countryman Korhonen has seen it all before with two wins under his belt and he too was bogey free in a 65 that left him atop the leaderboard.

The comeback kid

A phrase coined in the world of football by Iain Dowie, bouncebackability is now well known in the golfing world and Højgaard showed he had it in spades on Saturday. He dropped three shots in two holes on the sixth and seventh to tumble down the leaderboard but showed experience beyond his 18 years to card a third round 70. "It was important for me to get those three birdies in a row after dropping three shots on the sixth and seventh," he said. "You can make bogeys out here so you just have to deal with it and move on. I had a good run on eight, nine and ten with some long putts but I also had a three putt out there which I’m trying to avoid."

A game within a game

Stone has had a putt for a 59 in a Rolex Series event and won three times on the European Tour so we all know he is a player to be taken very, very seriously. But his infectious enthusiasm and sense of fun also shines through and even in the heat of battle, he can find some extracurricular entertainment - in this case, a driving contest with Guido Migliozzi. The Italian by the way is just one shot off the lead, too.