India's Jeev Milkha Singh shot a five-over 77 to slip to tied-60th position at the 120 million yen-Aiful Cup, being played at the par-72 Twinfields Golf Club in Ishikawa.
According to information from Japan, the Hero Honda-sponsored Jeev, failed to capitalise on his opening two rounds of 66 and 71 and courtesy a bogey splattered third round, slipped right down the leader-board at an aggregate of two-under 314.
Jeev's round began inauspiciously, with a bogey. The 31-year old Chandigarh pro then went on to drop shots on the fourth, sixth and seventh, to make the turn at four-over. A birdie on the tenth raised hopes of a revival but bogeys on the 16th and 18th further worsened his position. Jeev was found wanting on the greens where he tallied as many as 33 putts. That he managed just nine greens in regulations, is a pointer at the fact that his short game let him down today.
Meanwhile, overnight leader Taichi Teshima was joined by fellow Japanese golfers Hidehisa Shikata and Tetsuji Hiratsuka in the lead at 15-under 201.
While Teshima and Hiratsuka have returned tied-second finishes at The Crowns and the Fujisankei Classic respectively earlier this season, the surprise packet was Shikata, whose best finishes this season has been a tied-26th effort at the Mandom Lucido Yomiuri Open.
Shikata's round of four-under 68 was studded with birdies on the third, tenth, 11th, 15th, 17th and 18th, while his bogey holes proved to be the sixth and 12th. Two strokes behind the leaders was Australian Wayne Perske at 13-under 203 and fourth place. Katsumasa Miyamoto and Takuya Taniguchi were tied-fifth at 12-under 204, while Korea's Yeh Wei Tze was tied seventh with two-time winner this season, Toshimitsu Izawa.
