European Tour: Pablo Larrazabal emerges as 54-hole leader

By Bernie D'Amato | Jun 28, 2014

Aug 8, 2013; Rochester, NY, USA; Pablo Larrazabal tees off on the 1st hole during the first round of the 95th PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports /

31-year-old Pablo Larrazabal of Spain shot a five-under 67 in the third round of the BMW International Open, and leads the field by three-strokes heading into Sunday’s final round. Larrazabal is a three-time winner on the European Tour, with his most recent victory coming at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January.

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Pablo opened the tournament with a respectable three-under 69, then scorched the Golf Club Gut Larchenhof for a nine-under 63 in the second round. A third-round 67 gave Larrazabal a three round total of 17-under par, which includes no bogeys.

Eight players are tied for second place at 14-under: Richard Green, Francesco Molinari, Carlos Del Moral, Thomas Bjorn, Henrik Stenson, Robert Karlsson, Emiliano Grillo, and Rafa Cabrera-Bello.

I am tempted to say the final round will come down to Larrazabal, and whether or not he goes forwards or backwards, but the leaderboard is bunched up and a low score is out there. For example, Richard Green shot a 10-under 62 in the third round to rocket into a tie for second place. A score in the low sixties by someone in the eight-player group at 14-under, or the nine-player group at 13-under, will give that player a great chance to win the tournament.

However, Pablo is the only competitor who can put the tournament out of reach. A score in the low 60s will give him his fourth title on the Euro Tour.

It should be an exciting final day on the Euro Tour, so don’t forget to turn on the Golf Channel from 6:30-11am ET on Sunday.

BMW International Open leaderboard.