Scott Jamieson take one-shot lead into Alfred Dunhill final round

Scott Jamieson at the Alfred Dunhill Championships. Pic: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

Just four off the pace in joint-fifth, David Drysdale and Marc Warren are also in contention, but, in an event that has seen the Saltire prominent on the leaderboard from the off, Jamieson is in the driving seat after producing a cool display in temperatures nudging 40C in Kruger National Park.

Playing in the final group, the 35-year-old carded an eagle and five birdies – his only “blip” was a double-bogey 6 at the 14th – as he posted a 68 for an 11-under-par 205 total. Jamieson twice held a three-shot lead on the back nine and, though two closing birdies from American David Lipsky saw that reduced to just one, it was still a satisfying day’s work for the Scot.

“You want to make birdies from the start, but it’s easier being patient out of the blocks knowing that the front nine is the tougher nine,” said Jamieson, who has been based in Florida for just over a year.

“A birdie at nine meant I was out in one-under and I was really happy with that. The tee up on 11 gives you an opportunity for eagle and thankfully I was able to make one. I had a little blip on the 14th but bounced back well with a couple of birdies straight after, so I am very pleased.”

Jamieson is bidding to add to his sole European Tour victory in the 2013 Nelson Mandela Championship, an event that was reduced to just 36 holes by bad weather at Royal Durban. He came close to winning again in South Africa when finishing second to home player Branden Grace in the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City last November.

“It’s obviously a great position but I’m certainly not getting ahead of myself,” he insisted, with South African duo Brandon Stone and Zamber Lombard both lurking on eight-under. “There’s an awful long way to go. A lot can happen on this golf course, especially on the back nine, where there’s so much risk and reward. People can make eagles and people can make doubles pretty quickly. Hopefully I can keep doing what I’ve been doing and see what happens.”

Drysdale, who is bidding for his maiden victory on the circuit at the 471st attempt, mixed four birdies with three bogeys as he stayed in the mix with a 71, one less than Warren, who was three-over for the day after four holes but dug deep to salvage a level-par effort.

Two off the lead overnight, Doug McGuigan slipped 25 spots to joint-29th after a 76 for two-under, a shot behind Bob MacIntyre (72), while David Law covered his final ten holes in four-under for a 72 to sit on one-over.