Zhou Jun, 24, could secure a famous wire-to-wire victory after a two-under-par 70 put him two clear of Chinese Taipei's Chan Yih-shin going into the final round of the RMB1 million Omega Championship, the Omega China Tour's season-ending event at the Beijing Longxi Hotspring Golf Club on Saturday.
Zhou is the outright leader at five-under after sharing pole position for the first two days, while Chan, who also shot 70, is five strokes clear of the chasing pack.
Zhou will also play for the fourth successive day with Wu Kangchun, his best friend, whose 76 left him two-over and sharing third place with Xing Xiaoxuan, the second-round co-leader.
Xing, 27, kept up with the pace until the par-three 16th, when a triple-bogey by 'Triple X' saw him fall off the pace and finish with a 77.
A visibly frustrated Li Chao ended with a 73 to lie fifth on three-over, meaning he has only a remote chance of the victory required to win his third Omega Order of Merit in four seasons.
Liao Guiming, the current Omega Order of Merit leader, struggled with a stiff neck as an 81 put him joint 20th on nine-over.
Tianjin-based Zhou is in the form of his life after spending July and August in Beijing working with former national coach Song Qingli, which helped produce a fourth-place finish at the Tianjin Championship two weeks ago, his best-ever finish on Tour.
"I'm really surprised to play so well again. I know tomorrow is a very important day, so I'll try to relax tonight by playing cards with Wu Kangchun as I've been doing all week," joked the slimline Zhou, who only turned pro in 2007.
"I'd rate my performance this week at about 9.9 out of 10. I played really well in Tianjin , although I'm starting to get a little bit tired as this is my fifth event in five weeks. However, my putting has been good recently, which is the biggest difference to the first half of the year."
Zhou will face a big test trying to hold off the experienced Chan, who's looking for his first Omega China Tour victory after finishing joint-runner with compatriot Hsu Mong-nan in the season-opening Guangzhou Championship and third in the Dell Championship in Xiamen , won by Li.
The 31-year-old is aiming to become the fourth Chinese Taipei player to lift silverware this season following victories by Lu Wen-teh in Kunming , Hsu in Shanghai and Tsai Chi-huang's back-to-back wins in Chengdu and Tianjin last month.
"I last won in Chinese Taipei 10 months ago, so I'd really like to win again, although you never know what's going to happen on the final day. I'm playing well and could have scored better today, but I missed several short putts," said Chan, who started the week talking about having a 'big chance' of victory.
The final round will not only decide who will take home the RMB187,500 winner's paycheque in the Omega China Tour's richest event but also confirm the final Omega Order of Merit, with 31-year-old Liao poised to win the prestigious honour for the first time.
The Omega Order of Merit champion will be crowned along with several other award winners during Sunday evening's Omega China Tour Gala Dinner at the Sofitel Wanda Beijing.
The Omega Championship is being held for the first time at the 27-hole Beijing Longxi Hotspring Golf Club after two successful editions at the Tianan Golf Club, also in the capital, when Liang Wenchong and Zhang Lianwei emerged as champions.
(Xinhua News Agency October 12, 2008)
