Kazuma Kobori loses lead but stays in touch after third round of Australian PGA Championship

Saturday, 29 November 2025

Kazuma Kobori started out hot, dropped a few degrees, but never turned cold, as the Kiwi lost the lead, but not much ground, in a storm-hit third round at the Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane on Saturday.

The world No 183, who nailed a hole-in-one during his opening round, then smoked the best second-round score (63) to hold a one-shot lead at the halfway mark, remains the best-placed New Zealander in the field of the DP World Tour season-opening tournament at Royal Queensland.

Atop the leaderboard he is no longer, but in what proved a dramatic-free moving day for the 24-year-old, he is just one shot off the pace, in prime position to pounce to try and become the first man from this side of the ditch to win the title in 26 years.

A two-under 69 third round has Kobori in a two-way tie for fourth, at 12-under, alongside local hot-shot Min Woo Lee, Australia’s highest-ranked player (No 46), and the 2023 champ.

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They are one back from a trio at 13-under that is made up of Australian Anthony Quayle (who was a shot behind Kobori after two rounds, and finished tied third last year), Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia, and Spain’s David Puig, the latter recording the equal-best (with three others, but the only of them to be blemish-free) round of the day with his six-under 65.

Kobori’s weekend had started with such promise, his second shot on hole No 2 a brilliant one to notch an easy birdie, making it two from two for the morning, and six in succession counting back to his four-straight to finish Friday.

Kiwi Kazuma Kobori is one shot off the pace heading into the final round of the Australian PGA Championship. (File photo)

But, as players were ordered off the course due to forecast storms arriving not long after 11am local time (they had been sent out early in anticipation), causing a delay of around two hours, Kobori couldn’t quite re-find his magic touch when resuming to play his final 12 holes.

It was a frustrating but far-from-forlorn 16-straight pars which he recorded, as those around him kept up the pressure, the leading group at one stage bulging at half a dozen, including two-time winner (2013, 2019) Adam Scott, who produced five birdies through the first half of his sizzling Saturday.

While Ryan Fox faded further, the top-ranked New Zealander on return from eight weeks off having carded rounds of 67 then 70 and now a two-over 73 after a rotten run of five-straight bogeys from holes 10-14 to have him in a share of 57th at three-under, there are a couple of other Kiwis lurking in the top-10.

Daniel Hillier is in a four-way tie for sixth, after his four-under 67, in good company with Scott, one shot behind Kobori, while Nick Voke is a stroke back at 10-under in a five-way share of 10th following a stylish 66 that was highlighted by an off-green eagle putt at the par-four 12th.

Both Hillier and Voke had frustrating finishes when dropping shots on 18, which for the former came in a round where had had produced some magic touches, but again struggled with his putter, and came hot on the heels of a 17th party-hole where he had climbed out of a bunker with his second shot then sunk from 10-feet to save par in front of a loud rendition of Sweet Caroline, by a crowd who gave him a standing ovation and then had his ball as a collector’s item.

Of the other Kiwis to make the cut, Josh Geary (third-round 69) sits tied for 43rd at three-under, with Tyler Wood (71) a shot back in 51st and Denzel Ieremia (70) a further stroke behind at 57th.