Simon Dyson double-bogeyed the last hole to throw the race for the Spanish Open wide open again with a round to go in Seville.
In more windy conditions and after a delay of nearly two hours because of a flooded course, the current Irish and Dutch Open champion shot a one-under-par 71 to take over at the top from Gregory Bourdy.
The Frenchman did not even break 80 as he slumped to joint 21st, but after moving three clear Dyson was furious with his finish.
He was in the back bunker for two, failed to get out and then took three more.
Dyson dropped back to five under and will resume only one ahead of Spain's Pablo Larrazabal and Dane Soren Kjeldsen.
Victory could take the 34-year-old from York into a Ryder Cup qualifying position and increase the possibility that at least half of Jose Maria Olazabal's side in September will be English.
Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Justin Rose are already high up in the points race, while Ian Poulter and Paul Casey are both hoping to be in Chicago as well and Robert Rock is challenging as well.
Dyson's day did not start well when he failed to get up and down from a bunker on the first.
But as others really struggled in the wind the highest-ranked player in the field - he is currently 36th in the world - birdied three of the next four and then added another by almost spinning his approach to the 422-yard 10th into the hole.
There were also some great scrambles for par, his new belly putter rescuing him on a number of occasions, but he then missed a two-foot putt to bogey the long 13th.
Two-putting the long 16th made amends for that, but then came the mess-up on the 18th.
Larrazabal, joint third at El Prat last May, shot 69 to take over as the leading home hope in an event celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
The former French Open winner, who beat Sergio Garcia in a play-off for the BMW International in Munich last season, had four birdies in six holes around the turn, but dropped a shot at the last.
"Only one bogey - it's a great round," said Larrazabal. "I like it when the course is challenging. I don't like it when the winner is 25 under."Kjeldsen, round in 71, won the Andalucian Open on the course three years ago, but that was the 36-year-old's last European Tour success.
Dyson had been tied for second at halfway with 19-year-old Italian Matteo Manassero, Rock and
little-known Jorge Campillo.
The Challenge Tour graduate from Caceres north of Seville had a 73 to drop to fourth place, but Rock and Manassero both signed for 76 and fell back to joint 12th five strokes behind.
Dyson said: "It leaves a little sour taste.. I played 17 and a half great holes.
"The second shot was lovely, but just went 15 yards further than I thought it would and then I quit on the bunker shot - no excuses.
"I could be out of sight to be honest. I've chucked some shots away, but everybody is going to say that."
Collated third ropund scores and totals, Real Club de Golf de Sevilla, Seville, Spain
(Gbr & Irl unless stated, par 72):
211 Simon Dyson 71 69 71
212 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 71 70 71, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 71 72 69
213 Jorge Campillo (Spa) 68 72 73
214 Alejandro Canizares (Spa) 74 72 68
215 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 70 71 74, Thorbjorn Olesen (Den) 73 72 70, Marcel Siem (Ger) 71 72 72, Nicolas Colsaerts (Bel) 72 72 71, Peter Lawrie 71 73 71, Graeme Storm 70 71 74
216 Sam Hutsby 70 73 73, Carlos Del Moral (Spa) 74 73 69, Robert Rock 68 72 76, Matteo Manassero (Ita) 70 70 76, Darren Fichardt (Rsa) 75 68 73, Thongchai Jaidee (Tha) 73 69 74
217 Joel Sjoholm (Swe) 75 72 70, Shaun Micheel (USA) 67 77 73, Matthew Baldwin 69 73 75
218 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 73 74 71, Rafael Cabrera Bello (Spa) 70 73 75, Gregory Havret (Fra) 72 74 72
219 Gary Orr 70 72 77, Gareth Maybin 73 75 71, Lee Slattery 74 71 74, Romain Wattel (Fra) 73 74 72, Richard Green (Aus) 76 72 71, Markus Brier (Aut) 74 73 72, Borja Etchart (Spa) 73 74 72, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 73 66 80
220 James Kingston (Rsa) 74 68 78, Marc Warren 72 74 74, Fabrizio Zanotti (Par) 72 73 75, Danny Willett 68 73 79, Simon Thornton 73 73 74
221 Richard Bland 73 71 77, Alex Haindl (Rsa) 72 75 74, George Murray 74 74 73, Richie Ramsay 73 71 77, Chris Wood 72 73 76, Anders Hansen (Den) 72 73 76, Jarmo Sandelin (Swe) 75 72 74, Joakim Lagergren (Swe) 73 74 74
222 Emiliano Grillo (Arg) 73 72 77, Robert Jan Derksen (Ned) 72 75 75, Jose-Maria Olazabal (Spa) 75 72 75, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 74 74 74
223 Craig Lee 71 76 76, Christian Nilsson (Swe) 71 76 76, Mark F Haastrup (Den) 75 73 75, Adrian Otaegui (Spa) 73 73 77, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 74 73 76
224 Thomas Aiken (Rsa) 71 76 77, Andy Sullivan 73 75 76, Phillip Price 73 73 78, Michael Jonzon (Swe) 73 74 77, James Morrison 71 76 77
225 Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 76 70 79
226 Jack Hiluta 72 73 81, Gonzalo Fdez-Castano (Spa) 76 72 78, Johan Edfors (Swe) 74 74 78, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 74 74 78
227 Kenneth Ferrie 72 74 81, Bradley Dredge 72 75 80
228 Manuel Quiros (Spa) 76 72 80
229 Raul Quiros (Spa) 73 73 83
232 Felipe Aguilar (Chi) 75 72 85
