Victorian Brett Coletta takes a four-shot lead into the final round of the Queensland Open as he continues his quest to become to first amateur to win the event in 25 years.
After starting the third round with a share of the lead with fellow Victorian Lucas Herbert, Coletta hit a three-under 67 on Saturday to finish seven under overall at Brisbane Golf Club.
The 20-year-old is ahead of NSW rookie professional Dale Brandt-Richards (67) and Herbert (71), who are three under in the $110,000 tournament.
Second-year professional Herbert needs a top-10 result to get into the NSW Open in a fortnight.
South Australian Max McCardle (71) and New Zealander Mark Brown (71) round out the top five at two under.
Coletta, who finished the round with a birdie, said he felt as if he had everything under control.
"I tried to stay as composed as I could on the course. It does help with your thoughts and what's going through your head," he said.
A win for Coletta will help ease the pain of finishing runner-up at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship last week.
"A berth in the Masters, missing it still hurts. I am so proud of how I came back this week. After three rounds I am in the perfect position," he said.
"Thinking about winning at the start of the week was a bit of a far-fetched thought. To get here is just fantastic."
The last amateur to win the Queensland Open was Stuart Appleby in 1991.
