Franklin Manchest carded a superb six-under-par 67 on The Links at Fancourt on Saturday to set himself up for a tilt at what would be a life-changing victory as he moved into second place ahead of the closing round.

It was his best-ever round on a course he knows well, having grown up in George, and, at 10-under-par for the tournament, he was only two strokes off the lead as the players head to the challenging Montagu layout for the final round. That’s after completing a round on each of the courses at Fancourt – The Links, Outeniqua and Montagu.

The lead was held by France’s David Ravetto, who carded a serviceable two-under 71 on The Links to move to 12-under. Two more Frenchmen, Bejamin Hebert and Pierre Pineau, share third with Sam Hutsby of England.

“I feel really comfortable here,” aid Manchest. “I had to keep the nerves in check a bit though. After a solid round in Friday’s bad weather, I knew I had a chance and just told myself to keep my head down and go for it. It’s special to shoot a 67 here at The Links, which is my lowest ever score on this course. My putter really delivered today,” he added.

Manchest has just one top-10 finish in his Sunshine Tour career, which came last March at the Limpopo Championship. He has been trying to break through with regular starts on the Altron Big Easy Tour and the Blue Label Development Tour, with best showing on those of seventh on the Big Easy Tour and eighth on the Blue Label Tour.

Behind Manchest and the players in a share of third are seven players, including South Africans Louis Albertse, Robin Williams, Zander Lombard, Hennie du Plessis and Luca Filippi, all looking to keep the trophy in South African hands.

Ravetto, however, is looking to become the first Frenchman to take the title which has been won by major champions, including Nick Price, Darren Clarke, Retief Goosen, Trevor Immelman, Louis Oosthuizen and Paul Lawrie.

“The Links is the toughest of the three courses here and the pins were also tricky so I knew I had to hit good shots and be patient. I’m pretty happy with my work right now,” said Ravetto. “On The Links you just need to hang in there and be patient. It’s a really good test of golf.

“I’m trying not to think about the result tomorrow. If I can play my own game and focus on hitting good shots and good putts then I think I should be in a strong position at the end of the tournament.”