Olesen, Bhatia out in front at 3M Open

Thorbjorn Olesen aced the par three eighth and shot a four under 67 on Saturday in the 3M Open for a share of the third-round lead with Akshay Bhatia.

Olesen, the 35-year-old Danish player who led after the second round, used a six-iron on the 209-yard eighth at the TPC Twin Cities.

“It was a back pin. It just felt like I couldn’t get there with a seven, so we went for a soft six-iron,” Olesen said. “Obviously, took the slope perfectly, a big bonus to see it go in. It’s been a long time since I’ve had one.”

Bhatia had a 63 to post first at 18 under.

“I chipped in twice, made a lot of putts,” Bhatia said. “A lot of putts lipped in, which was really nice to see. All in all, just a pretty solid round. Felt like I did a pretty good job of playing out of the rough today. I didn’t hit it particularly great off the tee, but thankfully greens are soft enough to where you can kind of do that.”

Kurt Kitayama matched the tournament and course record with a 60, finishing before Olesen and Jake Knapp teed off in the final group, to get to 17 under. Fellow Japanese player Takumi Kanaya (65) also was 17 under with Knapp (67) and Sam Stevens (66).

Olesen followed the hole-in-one with a bogey on nine. On the back nine, he birdied 13 and 14, three-putted the 15th for bogey, birdied the short par four 16th and parred the final two. The eight-time European tour winner is chasing first PGA Tour title.

“It’s obviously different and it’s a big opportunity,” Olesen said. “I’m not going to lie, there’s going to be a lot of pressure, but I felt like in my career I’ve dealt pretty well with pressure. Obviously, the wins on the DP World Tour, but Ryder Cups, also.”

Bhatia, the 23-year-old California player with two PGA Tour victories, chipped in from 42 feet for birdie on the fifth and from 55 feet for another birdie on 11.

“I’m just trying to play solid golf and hopefully the cards fall my way tomorrow,” Bhatia said.

Kitayama matched the tournament mark set by Adam Svensson in the first round. Paul Goydos also has a share of the course record, shooting 60 in the 2017 3M Championship on the PGA Tour Champions. Kitayama had 12 birdies and a bogey. He played the front nine in seven under 28.

“I was just kind of going out there,” Kitayama said. “I don’t think you really have a number going out into any round, just kind of take what you can get.”

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