Connor Syme leads by two after superb third round at KLM Open – Articles

Connor Syme was “buzzing” after giving himself a two-shot lead to take into the final round of the 2025 KLM Open.

The Scot birdied the final two holes for a superb bogey-free 66, the best round of the day, to reach ten under par and move ahead of Joakim Lagergren at the summit.

Lagergren ground out a level-par 71 to stay at eight under with Ricardo Gouveia, the third member of that final group, sharing third place on four under with Syme’s compatriot Richie Ramsay and Italian Francesco Laporta.

“So, so good,” he said of his round. “Buzzing with that.

“Obviously a bonus to finish with a couple (of birdies) towards the end but overall really, really pleased.”

Birdies at the third and fifth had Lagergren three shots clear of the field, with Syme clear in second after a front nine containing eight pars and an eagle three at the third.

However, consecutive bogeys at the eighth and ninth holes cut the Swede’s advantage to one. He saved par after sending his tee-shot at the next into the right-hand rough but when Syme birdied the 11th, it was all square at the top.

Gouveia birdied the 15th to take a shot out of the pair’s lead but he and Lagergren both three-putted the 15th to drop a shot apiece and leave Syme ahead on his own.

Gouveia made a good par save at the 16th and saw Syme’s birdie putt just stay up to keep the margins the same at the top.

Syme made a move at the penultimate hole, his approach bounding in off the right-hand bank to three feet to set up a birdie.

Gouveia dropped a shot but recovered it at the last – despite sending his approach into the grandstand – as all three men finished with birdies, Lagergren’s eagle putt coming up six inches short.

Syme was the man on top, though, as he seeks a first win on the DP World Tour, having held the 54-hole lead on three previous occasions.

“Obviously there’s a bit of a gap at the moment for me and Joakim,” he said. “But with the weather tomorrow it can change so much, so quickly, so I’m just trying to do the best I can on every shot. I know that’s so cliche but that’s my goal.

“I’ve been in this situation a few times now, which have all been so different. It’s really tough to win out here, I’ve obviously given myself a good position a few times and tomorrow’s another great opportunity.

“I would love to do it, obviously, hopefully I can play my game tomorrow and I can do it. Overall I think that’s thinking too far ahead, I’ll just try to play one shot at a time and get that mindset from the start, and what will be will be.”

On his tee-shot at the 17th, which flirted with the bunker to the front right of the green with Syme repeatedly calling “don’t plug”, he said: “I just didn’t quite get it right – the smile was because I thought it was going to go in the bunker.

“Obviously got lucky that it just covered and no more, and obviously rolled to a decent distance to make birdie so yeah, it was very nice!”

Lagergren hit a superb 234-yard approach into the final green to set up a 30-foot eagle chance which would have left him one off the overnight lead, but settled for a tap-in birdie.

“That was probably my best shot of the day so that was nice to pull it off on the last hole,” he said.

“Nice to be within two as well, so looking forward to it. (I need to) just let myself actually play golf out there, not be stressed and just let myself hit those shots that I know I can hit.”

Fabrizio Zanotti shot 69 to reach three under, sharing sixth place with Rafa Cabrera Bello. Pierre Pineau finished with a birdie to end the day level on two under with fellow Frenchman David Ravetto, South African pair Jayden Schaper and Zander Lombard and home favourite Daan Huizing.

Alejandro Del Rey and Lucas Bjerregaard’s four-under-par 67s trailed only Syme for the round of the day and lifted them to one under, in a group of nine players sharing 13th place.