Hansen and Sjöholm put pressure on Hedblom

Peter Hedblom had fellow Scandinavians Joel Sjöholm and JB Hansen closing in on his lead as the third round of the ISPS HANDA Perth International began.

Swede Hedblom, needing a win this week to retain his card for next year, had given himself the opportunity to avoid an 11th trip to The European Tour Qualifying School by establishing a two shot halfway lead on seven under par at Lake Karrinyup.

However, playing the first four holes of his third round in level par saw his advantage trimmed to one by Hansen and Sjöholm.

The 43 year old’s compatriot Sjöholm also needs a big finish – at 150th on The Race to Dubai he needs to finish second on his own to have any chance of reaching the top 110 who will retain playing privileges come Sunday.

Starting on the back nine Sjöholm, without a top-20 finish all year, turned in a five under par 31.

At 90th on The Race to Dubai rookie Hansen has no concerns regarding his card; five birdies in his first 11 holes moving him into contention for a maiden victory.

Local favourite Brett Rumford and defending champion Bo Van Pelt were part of a group two shots off the lead on five under, American Van Pelt pitching to a foot at the first and adding a two-putt birdie at the third.