Kinoshita joins Ikemura at the top of Japan Open Golf Championship

Ryosuke Kinoshita battled his way to the top of the leaderboard after signing for an even-par 70 to share the third round lead with Tomoyo Ikemura at the Japan Open Golf Championship on Saturday.
 
Ikemura continued to hold onto the pole position he has held for the last three days after signing for a 71 and a three-day total of three-under-par207 while Shugo Imahira and Yuki Inamori are tied for third on 208.
 
Keita Nakajima, who was tied with Ikemura for the overnight lead, slipped to fifth place following a 73 while Philippines’ Justin De Los Santos moved to solo sixth place after carding a 69.
 
Kinoshita entered the third round one shot back of Ikemura. He made three straight pars before notching his first birdie on four before making pars on the rest of his holes for an outward 34.
 
The 33-year-old then birdied 11 before dropping two shots on 11 and 15. He recovered with another birdie but would close the round with another bogey on 18.
 
“It was tense, playing in such a unique atmosphere. But even under that pressure, I was able to hit approach shots that got close to the pins. Today’s round was really good. The setup was challenging, but even after making a bogey, I could quickly reset,” said Kinoshita.
 
Kinoshita acknowledges the pressures of contending on the final day but is prepared to keep his mental focus.
 
“Tomorrow will be tough, but I’ll build my game around the second shots. I’ll focus on keeping the ball in the fairway and rely on my confident iron play,” said Kinoshita. 
 
Ikemura, meanwhile, shrugged off suggestions of pressure but is instead focused on overcoming the challenging course set-up at Tokyo Golf Club.
 
“It’s less about the pressure but more about how challenging the pin positions and rough are. I enjoy courses where you have to hit into very specific, limited areas, so I hope I can keep enjoying it through tomorrow.
 
“I started strong from day one, and I felt some unusual nerves, but after two days of rest, I’m used to it now. I just want to enjoy my golf tomorrow,” said Ikemura.
 
De Los Santos was pleased to return with an under-par score for the first time this week and hopes to mount a strong charge for a good finish at the Japan Open, which is celebrating its 100^th anniversary in 2024. 
“Anything under par on this course is pretty good. I was lucky enough to make five birdies today. Hopefully, I can make more birdies tomorrow and try to catch up with the leaders,” said De Los Santos.
 
“I have to shoot something really low. Hitting the fairways is very important. I didn’t do that as well as I would have liked. But I’m hitting my irons wells. My approaches into the green were pretty good even when I had to lay up from the rough. Obviously, this is a tough course. I’m still going to stick to what I’ve planned. If you get too aggressive, you’re probably going to get punished.”
 
Leading third round scores
All Japanese nationals unless indicated otherwise
 
207 – Ryosuke Kinoshita 70-67-70, Tomoyo Ikemura 63-73-71
208 - Shugo Imahira 66-72-70, Yuki Inamori 67-70-71
209 - Keita Nakajima 69-67-73
211 – Justin De Los Santos (PHI) 71-71-69