Scotland's Paul Lawrie is on course to win the first six-figure cheque of his career following another scintillating performance at the Qatar Masters in Doha yesterday.
Two shots clear after a second-round 65, the 30-year-old from Aberdeen defied strong winds to add a joint best-of-the-day 67 and enters today's final round holding a five-stroke advantage.
Lawrie, who was 10 over par in missing the halfway cut by eight shots in last week's Dubai Desert Classic, stands on the 16-under-par total of 200.
Frenchman Jean van de Velde is his nearest challenger in the race for the £102,283 first prize, with two more Scots - Bernard Gallacher's nephew Stephen and Raymond Russell - sharing third spot with England's John Bickerton a stroke further back.
Lawrie's previous biggest payday was the 1996 Volvo PGA championship at Wentworth, where he collected nearly £87,000 for finishing tied second with Nick Faldo, two behind Costantino Rocca.
Three birdies in the opening four holes - the first of them after he almost holed his pitch - set the tone, and two more had come before he dropped his first shot of the week on the 470-yard 15th. A drive into rough there was just a temporary blip. Back he came with a 20-foot putt on the next. Van de Velde, another former European Under-25 champion who has won only once on tour in 10 years, moved into second place by grabbing birdies at two of the last four holes for a 70.
Russell, winner of the 1996 Cannes Open, matched that, while 24-year-old Gallacher, making his tour comeback after having back problems and losing his card two years ago, returned a 69 and Bickerton a 71.
Ireland's Paul McGinley and Padraig Harrington fell away yesterday and are now 13 shots of the lead following level par 72s, while Philip Walton had a disastrous 76.
"It's not easy out there," said McGinley afterwards. "It's was very windy but I played alright. I wanted a bit of wind but unfortunately the quality of my game was not good enough.
"I've played five out of the six European tournaments so far and I'm pleased with my start to the season. There's no panic and I'm far from disappointed."
Walton never really got going after he bogeyed the opening three holes. However, he did manage successive birdies at the ninth and 10th. Harrington, meanwhile, had three birdies and three bogeys in his round.
