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Mansell top dog after brilliant 67

ST ANDREWS, October 1, 2022 – England’s Richard Mansell tees off in tomorrow’s final round of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews knowing full well this could be the greatest day of his golf career so far.

He began today’s third round at the challenging Carnoustie course with a lead of two shots, while most of the chasing pack were playing at the easier Kingsbarns and St Andrews.

But far from being intimidated, he put together a courageous five-under-par round of 67, including a birdie at the very dangerous final hole, to increase his lead to four shots over his fellow Englishman Daniel Gavins, Alex Noren of Sweden and New Zealand's Ryan Fox. Denmark’s Niklas Nørgaard Møller and Antoine Rozner of France are a further shot behind.

On a sunny, breezy day, Mansell, 27, showed exactly why he has become one of the most talked-about young golfers in Europe, with five top-ten finishes this year on the DP World Tour.

After he had celebrated his brilliant round with fiancée Ellie and dog Arnie, he said: “I was looking forward to the challenge of Carnoustie. My coach Mike Kanski was here at the start of the week and he’s helped massively. I feel really in control of my game right now.

“I’ve been in contention a lot this year and had chances on Sundays. They say in golf, every time you lose, you learn. That’s what I feel like I’ve done really well this year.

“This is Links golf, anything can happen. It’s St Andrews. People can shoot 60. I’m just really focused on myself right now. I’m going to try and shoot a good score and see where it puts me.”

Art dealer Alex Acquavella is one of the favourites for the Team Championship heading into the final round. The American – partnered by Englishman Callum Shinkwin – posted a team score of 61 at Kingsbarns to finish on 28-under-par, two behind leaders Bruce Mitchell and pro Christiaan Burke.

“Callum played great today, I hit it well too and we’ve been playing off each other well all week,” said Acquavella. “Callum is such a disciplined and focused player and he hits the ball a mile. It’s been fun to watch this week.

“Kingsbarns is the most beautiful place ever and it is a super-fun tournament. This is my eighth year. I made the cut once in 2017 with Brandon Stone. The last day was crazy. We had a shotgun start because of the weather and I think we finished tied seventh.

“I’ll be nervous. I’ll just try to do what I’ve been doing the whole time. Just swing easy and have fun.”