Higa and Furukawa set for Sunday showdown

Kazuki Higa and Ryunosuke Furukawa will head into the final round of the ISPS HANDA Explosion in the summer event locked in a battle for the title as both players are tied for the third round lead on Saturday.
 
Higa, a six-time JGTO winner and 2022 money ranking champion, maintained his momentum to stay at the top of the leaderboard by returning with a six-under-par 66 for a three-day total of 23-under-par 193.
 
While he admitted that his approach play was not “laser sharp,” he was pleased with his putting and ability to avoid mistakes.
 
“It wasn’t like I was sticking everything right next to the pin, but I managed to hole a lot of putts from around one pin length,” said Higa. “Compared to yesterday, I didn’t miss many greens. My tee shots were steady, and I was able to build on that.”
 
Furukawa, meanwhile, made his own charge with a 65, keeping pace with Higa thanks to a composed back-nine performance after a nervy start.
 
“Today I was able to hit my shots with less risk,” Furukawa reflected. “I set myself a goal of 10 birdies. In the morning, I got too fired up and it backfired, but once I calmed down after the turn, the scores came. That birdie at the par-three seventh was really huge.”
 
Both players acknowledged the significance of competing side by side in the final pairing, particularly given their shared Kyushu roots.
 
“We’re both from Kyushu, and we’ve battled for titles back home before. I’m really looking forward to going at it again tomorrow,” said Furukawa.
 
Higa added: “I’m excited. Honestly, my good form has allowed me to be in this position. I don’t want to hold anything back. This week it’s not just about the final group as there are still chances for players a few shots behind.”
 
The pair lead by one shot over Kohei Okada and Ren Yonezawa, who continued to post identical rounds of 64, 65 and 65 to share third place. Mikumu Horikawa and Australian veteran Brad Kennedy are also firmly in the hunt after carding rounds of 64 and 65, respectively, to stay just two shots off the pace.
 
Leading third round scores
*All Japanese unless indicated otherwise
193 – Ryunosuke Furukawa 64-64-65, Kazuki Higa 65-62-66
194 – Kohei Okada 64-65-65, Ren Yonezawa 64-65-65
195 – Mikumu Horikawa 67-64-64, Brad Kennedy (Aus) 64-66-65
196 – Kota Kaneko 66-68-62, Itsuki Kurokawa 65-68-63