Guan will take 2-shot lead into final round at Asia-Pacific Am

Guan leads entering final round at Asia-Pacific Am

Tianlang Guan leads by two shots entering the final round of the Asia-Pacific Amateur.

Tianlang Guan will take a two-shot lead into the final round at the Asia-Pacific Amateur. The 14-year-old is at 14 under through three rounds at Amata Spring Country Club in Bangkok, Thailand, after a third-round even-par 72.

Guan has held the lead after each round, but Australia’s Oliver Goss made up ground in Round 3 with a 3-under 69. Goss sits at 12 under for the championship. Goss, a quarterfinalist at this year’s U.S. Amateur who will join the University of Tennessee roster in the spring, had three birdies and no bogeys. Guan, meanwhile, started the day with a 2-over 38 before rebounding on the back nine with a 2-under 34 to get back to even for the day.

“We all started a little bit slow,” Guan said. “I felt a bit nervous, and everybody looked a little bit nervous to start with, and there was not much talking. I then started focus on my own game and felt pretty relaxed on the back nine, got a few birdies, so it was all right.”

Thailand’s Prin Sirisommai is third at 9 under, and South Korea’s Soo-Min Lee is another shot back in solo fourth.

Washington sophomore Cheng-Tsung Pan started Round 3 with a birdie and an eagle in the first two holes, and he finished at 5-under 67. It helped him climb to the fifth position on the leaderboard.

The Asia-Pacific Amateur’s winner earns an invitation to the Masters. The winner and runner(s)-up earn exemptions into International Final Qualifying for the Open Championship.