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Turin - South Africa's Garth Mulroy carded a six-under-par 66 to take a one-shot lead after the third round of the Italian Open on Saturday.
Mulroy, sitting only one shot behind overnight leader Richard Bland, started with a birdie at the first and made up for a bogey at the fifth by reeling off three successive birdies in his outward nine.
At the turn he birdied the 10th and 13th holes and finished with another birdie at the last.
With nine players only four shots off the leading pace, Mulroy faces a challenge on the final day Sunday at the Royal Park I Roveri.
English veteran Bland had put himself within sight of a first title in 10 years when he took a one-shot lead with his second successive 66 on Saturday.
But the 39-year-old started with a bogey at the second and on his back nine failed to produce the birdie blitz which, for two days running, had put him in surprise contention.
He is now in a six-strong group which sits four shots off the pace of Mulroy, whose three-round total of 199 gave him a one-shot lead over Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.
Had Fernandez-Castano not picked up four bogeys his round of 67 - which included seven birdies and an eagle at the par five eighth - he may have taken the overnight lead.
Sitting one shot further behind on 201 are fellow Spaniards Rafa Cabrera-Bello, who shot a 65, and Pablo Larrazabal, who carded a 66.
Alongside Bland at four shots off the leading pace are Italian Matteo Manassero, Welshman Phillip Price, Germany's Martin Kaymer and Frenchman Gregory Bourdy.
Bourdy's round of 70 included two bogeys and only four birdies but perhaps the most disappointed was Marc Warren.
The Scot started the third round only one shot behind Bland but made only three birdies and bogeyed the fourth, 10th and 16th holes on his way to a level par 72 which left him six shots off the lead.
Leading third round scores in the Italian Open at Royal Park I Roveri, Turin, on Saturday (par 72, GBR and IRL unless stated):
199 - Garth Mulroy (RSA) 66 67 66
200 - Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (ESP) 68 65 67
201 - Rafael Cabrera Bello (ESP) 67 69 65, Pablo Larrazabal (ESP) 69 66 66
203 - Richard Bland 66 66 71, Phillip Price 68 69 66, Matteo Manassero (ITA) 69 69 65, Nicolas Colsaerts (BEL) 71 67 65, Gregory Bourdy (FRA) 69 64 70, Martin Kaymer (GER) 70 66 67
204 - Joel Sjoholm (SWE) 64 71 69, Hennie Otto (RSA) 70 67 67, Shane Lowry 70 67 67, Sam Little 67 68 69, Victor Dubuisson (FRA) 66 69 69
205 - Emiliano Grillo (ARG) 68 70 67, Marc Warren 68 65 72, Anders Hansen (DEN) 70 68 67, Keith Horne (RSA) 66 71 68, Lorenzo Gagli (ITA) 69 68 68, Lee Slattery 65 71 69
Selected:
206 - Thomas Aiken (RSA) 70 67 69, Richard Sterne (RSA) 67 68 71, Bradley Dredge 67 69 70, Graeme Storm 69 68 69
207 - Dylan Frittelli (RSA) 70 67 70
208 - Edouard Dubois (FRA) 67 72 69, Jaco van Zyl (RSA) 71 69 68, Gregory Havret (FRA) 70 69 69
