Tommy Fleetwood made two early birdies on day three of the WGC-HSBC Champions to cut Tony Finau's lead to one shot at Sheshan International Golf Club.
The reigning Race to Dubai champion knows a win this week could take him back to the top of the Rankings and he moved to ten under to emerge as Finau's nearest challenger, with the American playing his first four holes in level par.
Defending champion Justin Rose and American Xander Schauffele were then at nine under, a shot clear of Masters Tournament champion Patrick Reed.
Schauffele needed a nice chip to birdie the par five second but Finau, Reed and Rose all took care of it with the minimum of fuss, with Reed bouncing back from a bogey on the first.
Fleetwood holed from the fringe on the third to join Rose at nine under before Schauffele followed him in from eight feet to make it a three-way tie for second.
That was soon just two back as Finau missed the green and played a poor chip on the third for a first bogey of the day to give back that gain from the second.
Fleetwood then put his tee-shot on the fourth to ten feet for back-to-back birdies and he was just one shot off the lead.
Thai Kiradech Aphibarnrat was two under for his first five holes to sit four off the lead alongside American Keegan Bradley.
Spaniard Rafa Cabrera Bello, Argentinian Emiliano Grillo and Americans Patrick Cantlay and Billy Horschel were six under.
