Hend regains lead at Taiwan Masters

Australia's Scott Hend stands on the brink of his fourth Asian Tour win, carding a two-under-par 70 to regain his lead after the third round of the $600,000 Taiwan Masters Saturday.

Overnight leader Sam Cyr of the United States slipped to second place after signing for a 73 on a day where only four players managed to break par at the Taiwan Golf and Country Club.

Bangladesh's Siddikur remained in contention for his second win on Asian Tour when he posted a 71 to share third place with Thailand's Panuphol Pittayarat, who carded a 72.

As players brace for the threat of Typhoon Fitow, expected to bring torrential rain and gusty winds over the weekend, Hend stood firm to reclaim his lead which he had earlier taken in the opening round.

"It was pretty tough to stay focused out there. I did well through 17 holes and just lost it at the last where I made another bogey. It was very demanding and you just got to hang in there," said Hend. The Australian's previous three Asian Tour victories were all from come-behinds.

But as he starts his final round in pole position, Hend is bullish about his chances after he marked his card with four birdies and two bogeys for a three-day total of five-under-par 211.

"It doesn't matter whether you are in front or behind. What's important is you play good golf and that's what I'm going to do tomorrow," said Hend.

The Taiwan Masters is the last chance for players to break into the top-10 on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and secure their place in the CIMB Classic in Malaysia later this month. It is also the penultimate event for leading players on the merit list vying for a place in the WGC-HSBC Champions in China.

Leaderboard (a denotes amateur):

211 - Scott HEND (AUS) 69-72-70.

212 - Sam CYR (USA) 70-69-73.

214 - SIDDIKUR (BAN) 72-71-71, Panuphol PITTAYARAT (THA) 72-70-72.

217 - BAEK Seuk-hyun (KOR) 73-70-74.

218 - Arnond VONGVANIJ (THA) 75-73-70, Antonio LASCUNA (PHI) 72-76-70.

219 - Chawalit PLAPHOL (THA) 76-70-73, Matthew STIEGER (AUS) 74-71-74.

220 - LU Wen-teh (TPE) 73-75-72, Ryan MCCARTHY (AUS) 75-73-72, Adam GROOM (AUS) 71-74-75, Unho PARK (AUS) 74-71-75, Berry HENSON (USA) 73-71-76.

Selected scores

221 - Angelo QUE (PHI) 73-74-74

225 - Boonchu RUANGKIT (THA) 73-74-78, Thaworn WIRATCHANT (THA) 72-75-78, TSAI Chi-huang (TPE) 73-74-78.