Kiradech Aphibarnrat believes his next win on the DP World Tour is not "far away" after surging into contention on Moving Day at the Volvo China Open.
The Thai great has not been in the winner's circle since lifting his fourth DP World Tour title at the ISPS Handa World Super 6 Perth in February 2018.
Aphibarnrat was five shots back at the start of the third round, but the 35-year-old is just one behind leaders Haotong Li and Eugenio Chacarra after a flawless 65 at Enhance Anting Golf Club.
He birdied the fourth and seventh to reach the turn in 33 before a brace of gains at the 11th was followed by back to back birdies from the 16th to sit one adrift of the leading duo.
Aphibarnrat found thick rough with his tee shot at the last, but almost holed out his third shot into the par-five hole. He had a 15 foot putt to make it a three-way tie at the top, only for his effort to lip out.
However, he was in bullish mood after his sparkling third round and is confident of adding his tally of victories in Shanghai, having previously won on Chinese soil at the Shenzhen International in 2015.
"I got off to a slow start. Just tried to play fairways and greens, give myself opportunities to putt," the World Number 318 said.
"It seemed today that everything went to plan, except that drive on the last that was a little bit out of place. Still a decent round.
Kiradech Aphibarnrat cards a 65 (-6) to move to T3 👏#VolvoChinaOpen
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) April 19, 2025
"There’s a lot of birdie opportunities out there, but you have to make sure you miss in the right spot. On some holes if you make a mistake it’s impossible to get up and down, especially with a lot of sand around the greens.
"I’m just trying to play smart, make sure I miss in the right spots and when I have a chance, make sure I can take it.
"I’m really happy with the way I played the last few rounds and stayed calm and patient. I stuck to my gameplan, talked to my caddie all day. I’m really enjoying my game so far.
"I just need to beat everyone on the course, that’s the job I need to do. I haven’t thought about when my last win was. I think about when my next one is coming, I don’t think it’s far away."
