Anders S Hansen hopes to follow the example set by Denmark's growing contingent of European Tour winners on Sunday by capturing his first Challenge Tour title, the Galeria Kaufhof Pokal Challenge at Rittergut Birkhof Golf Club in Germany.
The 27 year old Dane shot a third round 69 for a 19 under par total of 197 on a day interrupted by three storm delays to take a five stroke lead into the final 18 holes of the event where he recorded his best finish on the Challenge Tour - tied fourth - last year.
Hansen - not to be confused by the European Tour player of the same name - takes that commanding advantage into the last round from three players, Ariel Canete of Argentina, England's Gareth Davies and Welshman Mark Mouland. They signed for rounds of 69, 66 and 69 respectively for 14 under par totals of 202.
The storm delays resulted in a total of five and a half hours of lost play, and also cost the Dane his momentum. He carded his first bogey of the tournament at the second hole, just after the resumption after the second suspension.
However Hansen regained his composure and re-discovered the quality he had shown in making a total of 16 birdies in his first 36 holes by picking up strokes at the third, ninth, 12th and 14th for his three under par round.
Now, after winning his first professional last weekend on the Srixon Tour in his native country, Hansen aims to follow in the footsteps of players of the calibre of Thomas Björn, Søren Hansen and Søren Kjeldsen, who all succeeded on the Challenge Tour before going on to triumph on The European Tour.
He said: "It has been awesome what these guys - including my namesake, Anders Hansen - have done for Denmark. Those of us coming through can all see what is possible on The European Tour and there achievements inspire and encourage us. It helps our morale to see at least one of them up there challenging somewhere in the world most weeks.
"I only hope I can go on to win this title. I've never had such a big lead at any level of golf and I will try to keep doing the things I've done right over the first three rounds."
Davies, the 28 year old from Sheffield, produced the biggest move of the day, making seven birdies and dropping only one shot, despite the constant interruptions. He hit a rich vein of form from the tenth, picking up four successive birdies and grabbing another at the last to shoot 66.
Mouland, who has chased Hansen for most of the tournament, reeled in four birdies to turn in 32 but for the third day in a row, he faltered on the homeward stretch and made just one birdie at the 12th, sandwiched in between bogeys at the 11th and 13th.
