KARACHI: Matloob Ahmed needed a perfect performance on Saturday. He delivered just that but he’ll need to repeat the same performance on Sunday and hope his longtime rival slips up if he’s to make it a hat-trick of titles at the Rashid D. Habib Memorial Professional Golf Tournament.

In a sublime show of golf, two-time defending champion Matloob fired a bogey-free 64 to make amends for a disastrous second round showing which saw him slip eight strokes off the lead at the Karachi Golf Club.

He reduced that gap to six shots but with leader Shabbir Iqbal looking in blistering form as well, it will require more than just a special display from Matloob if he is to retain the title.

Shabbir also played a bogey-free third round, firing a 66 featuring an eagle and four birdies as he moved to 12-under 204 and four shots clear at the top.

Mohammad Ashfaq (69) and Taimoor Khan (69) are joint-second on 208, with Ahmed Baig (69) alongside Matloob on 210. A shot further adrift is Mohammad Zubair (70).

Hamza Amin couldn’t maintain his performance of the first two days as the overnight joint-leader could only manage a 74 and is tied on 212 with Mohammad Munir (71).

A group of three golfers that includes Mohammad Alam (72), Jafal Hussain (72) and Waheed Baloch (74) is at 214.

Shabbir might be in the clear heading into the final round but in the past he’s seen a four-shot lead slip. That too, when he was leading Ashfaq by that very margin.

Four years ago at the CAS Open, Ashfaq made up a four-stroke deficit in the final five holes to upset Pakistan’s top golfer to the title. Ashfaq said he will try to revive memories of that comeback on Sunday.

“That time, I made up four shots on five holes … tomorrow I have to make that up over 18 holes,” Ashfaq told Dawn. “The course if playing well and I think its going to be a close finish.”

Playing alongside Shabbir in the same flight, Ashfaq hit four birdies but said he could’ve done better with his putting.

“I’ll head out to the course early in the morning [on Sunday] and try to improve that aspect of my game,” he said.

Taimoor also hit four birdies, while Ahmed got five but no one could match Matloob’s tally of eight as he sank birdies on the fourth, seventh, eighth, 10th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 17th holes.

It wasn’t a day to remember for Hamza though as he fell two shots behind after just four holes with Shabbir making a flying start.

As Shabbir birdied the opening hole and hit an eagle on the fourth, Hamza had just one birdie to show for his efforts. And Shabbir moved three shots clear of Hamza with a birdie on the sixth.

As Shabbir powered ahead on the back nine, hitting two more birdies on the 12th and 13th holes, Hamza faltered. Having double-bogeyed the 11th, he hit a birdie on the 13th but then bogeyed immediately afterwards. Hamza got another birdie on the 17th but a double bogey on the final hole capped a disappointing day for him.

Published in Dawn, March 28th, 2021