Victor Dubuisson turned in 34 to open up a one-shot lead as Li Haotong made a surge through the field on the final day of the Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player.
Scotsman Scot Jamieson had entered day four with a one-shot advantage at Gary Player Country Club but he turned in level par as the seventh Rolex Series event of the season set itself up for a dramatic conclusion.
Frenchman Dubuisson was nine under with nine holes to play, a shot clear of Jamieson and home favourite Branden Grace, with China's Li at seven under after picking up eight shots in 15 holes.
Two-time Major Championship winner Martin Kaymer was then at six under, a shot clear of Italy's Francesco Molinari.
Li made the big early move, picking up birdies on the first, second, fourth, fifth and sixth to rocket his way up the leaderboard after starting the day nine shots off the lead.
Jamieson hit an excellent approach into his opener but missed the birdie putt, with Dubuisson getting inside him and holing from four feet to join the lead.
Jamieson and Grace both made birdies on the par five second but Li was the man to watch, making a sixth gain of the day on the ninth to turn in 30.
Grace hit a brilliant approach into the fifth for another gain and all three members of the final group then put their second shots close on the sixth for birdies.
Jamieson had looked unflappable but found a bunker on the eighth, flew his shot from the sand over the green and failed to get up and down. That meant a double-bogey out of nowhere and all of a sudden Dubuisson was the man in the lead.
The top three positions had looked a closed shop but Li had other ideas, hitting a smart tee-shot on the 12th and getting up and down from a bunker on the 14th for two more birdies and he was just two off the lead.
Kaymer had made bogeys on the second and fifth but hit an excellent tee-shot into the seventh, holed a bunker shot on the eighth and made the most of the par five ninth to reel off a hat-trick of birdies.
Molinari had tap-in birdies on the first and third but dropped a shot on the fourth before recovering it on the eighth.
Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex leader Tommy Fleetwood and home duo Louis Oosthuizen and Darren Fichardt were at four under.
