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By Kent Gray
Bryson DeChambeau has used an awful lot of fancy words to describe his golf game at the 30th Omega Dubai Desert Classic but kept the language plain and simple as he moved to the precipice of a precious international win.

A 68 on moving day at Emirates Golf Club received an “underperforming” grade from the world No.5 with a ‘can do better but might not need to’ footnote. He’d love to finally bring his “A-Game” to the Majlis but insists he won’t really care how he gets through Sunday as long as he finishes near the bottom of the golfing alphabet with a W.

That looks decidedly possible even with defending champion Haotong Li just a shot back of DeChambeau’s 16-under-par three-quarters of the way pace and three-time champion Ernie Els, -13 with Englishman Matt Wallace, more than just a sentimental threat.

Heck, even DeChambeau believes he can protect his one-shot buffer in the $3.25 million European Tour event without his Sunday best.

“I know even with not my best, I can get it done. I’ve done it before, and so if worst comes to worst tomorrow, I’ll figure out a way.”

Of all the fascinating quotes that have emanated from the deep recesses of DeChambeau’s mind this week, that one will likely resonate loudest in the locker-room ahead of today’s mouth-watering final round.

DeChambeau arrived in Dubai with five PGA Tour titles including four in his last seven starts, eight if you count Tiger Woods’ unofficial Hero World Challenge before Christmas. But his ambitions clearly go well beyond the borders of the United States of America as the 25-year-old admitted earlier in the week.

“There’s plenty of players that have won worldwide, and I want to be one of them.”

DeChambeau mightn’t have cracked the formula for the Majlis yet but intends on kick-starting his global expansion plans by whatever means necessary on Sunday. His third round was a case study in getting it done even if it was a little dusty, albeit by his own lofty expectations, at times.

The 68 wasn’t without its flashes of brilliance; he hit the pin with his approach to the par-4 6th and somehow made the last of his six birdies with a piece of wedge wizardry from the hay to the right of the 17th green. In between times he pinged crucial putts in off the flag, none more important than on the 9th after back to back bogeys had seen him fall three behind Alvaro Quiros and Li.

“Huge,” was how DeChambeau described the birdie putt to complete his outward nine in 35 strokes, one under. “It was a 27-footer. It was big. I needed that to give me some momentum and then hit an incredible 5-iron in on 10. I thought I had it read right [the resulting eagle putt which ended in a tap-in birdie] and missed it, but that putt on 9 was big for momentum.”

Quiros started the third round a shot back and managed to birdie three of his first five holes despite a thoroughly uncooperative driver. The Spaniard somehow hit the first seven greens in regulation despite missing every single fairway but his charmed run finally ended on the 8th when he failed to get up and down after leaving himself another tough approach from the desert. The bogey was a sign of topsy-turvy things to come as Quiros traded three further birdies with two bogeys and a double on 18 after finding the water to eventually settle for a frustrating 71.

Lucas Herbert, the third round co-leader, also has four shots to make up on DeChambeau after a 72, a score inflated by a two-shot penalty for improving his lie by moving loose impediments with his wedge on the 3rd. The incident, caught on camera, put a dampener on the Victorian’s Australia Day celebrations.

Els is three back but knows he’ll need something special to run down the “kids” above and around him, especially DeChambeau.

“Shoot, I’m still leading, obviously. It’s fantastic. I couldn’t be displeased with that, but my expectation levels are for how I know I can perform, and I feel like I’m underperforming a little bit,” the American drawcard said.

“I’m just not 100 percent with my golf game right now but still in the lead, still got the job done. Made it happen when it’s necessary and hopefully I can have one more of those days and maybe even a better ball striking day tomorrow.

“I can’t express to you [in] words how awesome it would be to win on the European Tour.”

Unadulterated ambition, plain and simple. DeChambeau’s pursuers can’t say they haven’t been warned.