PERTH, Australia – Thorbjorn Olesen’s bunker shots and putting helped him grind out a 5-under 67 Saturday to lead the Perth International golf tournament by three strokes after the third round.

Olesen of Norway had six birdies and a bogey to reach 16-under after three rounds, matching the score that won the inaugural tournament two years ago. He leads from South Korea’s Sihwan Kim, who shot 69 to move to 13 under, a stroke ahead of England’s James Morrison, who also had 69 after Friday’s course-record 63.

American Peter Uihlein was the big mover Saturday, making seven birdies in an unblemished 65 to move up to outright fourth at 11-under.

Former Masters champion Charl Schwartzel of South Africa (70) is seven shots off the pace entering Sunday’s final round.

Perth’s Lake Karrinyup Golf and Country Club played relatively sedately Saturday in warm and mildly windy conditions. There were 21 over-par scores among the 65 players who made the cut and 11 eagles as pin positions remained forgiving.

Olesen demonstrated an outstanding ability to scramble as he saved pars or made birdies from difficult positions. He set that tone with a birdie on the first and reinforced it when he chipped in for birdie at the third after taking a provisional ball.

“It was a grind out there,” Olesen said. “I was struggling but I kept on fighting, kept having fun out there and trying my best.

“Five under is a pretty good score when you’re not playing that great. I hit some awesome bunker shots today. I missed one on 15 which was almost impossible but I had some great up and downs, almost holed a couple.”

Olesen said his save on the third hole reflected his round.

“I hit my tee shot right – I hit a couple right today – but it was lying beautiful in the light rough,” he said. “I hit it perfect, it checked up on me and rolled right in.”

Kim contributed one of the day’s eagles, on the par-4 14th, and had four birdies and three bogeys in another scrambling round.

Morrison couldn’t replicate the fireworks of his 9-under second round, but made five birdies in six holes on his inward nine to stay well in contention.

Jason Dufner, the 2013 U.S. PGA champion, who made the cut in his first tournament after almost three months off with a neck injury, shot 69 Saturday to be in a tie for 19th at 7-under.

PERTH, Australia – Peter Whiteford of Scotland had back-to-back rounds of 66 to hold a one-shot lead at the halfway mark of the Perth International on Friday.

Whiteford, who needs to finish first or outright second to retain his European Tour card, moved to 12 under with an eagle on the par-5 7th – his 16th hole – to move ahead of Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen, who followed up his first-round 64 with a 69.

“It’s no holds barred, win or bust this week,” Whiteford said. “I’m very nervous. It’s not a matter of `I’d like to win,’ I need to, to try to keep my job.”

Olesen started the second round in a share of the lead at 8 under, and had four birdies before a bogey at the last.

“It’s always tough to come back after a great round,” he said. “With the way I played these last two days I feel more confidence going into the weekend.”

Sihwan Kim of South Korea was in third place at 10 under, one clear of James Morrison of England, who hit a course-record, 9-under 63, and David Drysdale of Scotland.

Morrison said the Lake Karrinyup Golf and Country Club is the “sort of course that suits me. I just feel comfortable.”

Charl Schwartzel recovered from a rocky start to his second round and had a 69 to move to 7 under, while Victor Dubuisson made birdies on five of his first seven holes in a 67 to move to 6 under.

Jason Dufner, the 2013 U.S. PGA champion, made the cut in his first tournament after almost three months off with a neck injury with two rounds of 70.

Geoff Ogilvy, who was 1 over after rounds of 73 and 72, and defending champion Jin Jeong, who was 3 over after rounds of 72 and 75, missed the cut.

PERTH, Australia – Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark and John Wade of Australia shot course-record 8-under 64s at the Lake Karrinyup Country Club to share the lead after the first round of the Perth International on Thursday.

Olesen teed off in an afternoon group and had four birdies on each of the front and back nines to equal the mark that Wade, a 46-year-old assistant pro at the Commonwealth Golf Club in Victoria state, set in the morning.

“I played really, really well the front nine. I gave myself a lot of chances there,” Olesen said. “Especially my short game was amazing out there. My chipping and bunker shots were really, really good.

“The greens are perfect, layout is great.”

Wade could barely believe his opening round, after qualifying earlier in the week for the jointly sanctioned European Tour and Australasian Tour event.

“I’ve really been struggling recently, even in the lead-up,” he said. “This is all new to me. I’ve just got to go out with the same attitude tomorrow.”

Michael Sim of Australia, Peter Whiteford of Scotland, Kim Shi-wan of South Korea, and Tom Lewis of England were tied for third at 6 under.

In a group a stroke further back were Australians Brett Rumford, Matthew Griffin and Jason Scrivener, David Drysdale of Scotland, Mark Foster of England, Julien Quesne of France and Magnus Carlsson of Sweden.

Charl Schwartzel sank a long putt on his last hole to finish with a 68 and a share of 14th spot.

American Jason Dufner, the 2013 U.S. PGA champion, had a 70 in his first competitive round in almost three months since withdrawing from the U.S. PGA Championship with a neck injury.

Dufner was a stroke ahead of Victor Dubuisson, who mixed four birdies with three bogeys in a 71, and two clear of defending champion Jin Jeong of South Korea.

PERTH, Australia – Jason Dufner is set to return to tournament play on Thursday at the Perth International after missing nearly three months of golf in which he “totally detached” himself from the sport – not even watching any of the Ryder Cup on television.

Dufner, whose injury cost him any chance of earning a qualifying spot for the Ryder Cup, on Tuesday said he was feeling “much better physically … a little bit rested mentally.”

The 2013 PGA champion is among the Lake Karrinyup Country Club headliners who include fellow major winners Charl Schwartzel and Geoff Ogilvy and European Ryder Cup player Victor Dubuisson.

Dubuisson was one of the stars of the European team which won the Ryder Cup for the eighth time in 10 tournaments at Gleneagles, Scotland in late September.

“I wasn’t too interested in golf or what was going on in the golfing world during that time period,” Dufner said. “I didn’t watch one minute of the Ryder Cup. I got into a lot of different things. It was disappointing that I was injured, but it wasn’t miserable for me.”

Dufner, who was runner-up at the inaugural Perth International in 2012, said playing without pain this week would be an achievement.

“I haven’t played competitive golf in 11 weeks, I don’t have that many expectations,” Dufner said. “I feel like if I can play 18 holes without any pain, that’ll be a good thing. Get rolling in the right direction again.”

The Perth International is co-sanctioned by the Australasian and European tours.

DUBLIN –  Rory McIlroy said Monday that mediation in a lawsuit with his former management company has failed, and he will skip his next two tournaments in China because he needs time to prepare for the trial.

McIlroy will not play the BMW Masters, which starts Oct. 30 at Lake Malaren, or the following week at the HSBC Champions. Those are the opening two events in the final series of the Race to Dubai on the European Tour. The HSBC Champions is a World Golf Championship.

The world’s No. 1 player has been involved in an acrimonious dispute with Dublin-based Horizon Sports Management. He left Horizon in the spring of 2013, about six months after signing a lucrative contract with Nike. Both groups have sued each other, and McIlroy’s attorneys have sought evidence that Graeme McDowell was getting a better deal from Horizon. A judge recommended mediation to keep sensitive documents from going public.

“I’m going to need time away from tournament golf to prepare for the trial over my legal dispute with Horizon Sports Management,” McIlroy said in a statement. “The court-direction mediation process failed over the weekend to resolve the issue.”

The trial is expected to begin in February.

McIlroy has virtually locked up the Race to Dubai. He is not expected to play until the DP World Tour in Dubai on Nov. 20-23. He also plans to defend his title in the Australian Open, which would be his final tournament of the year.

McIlroy won the British Open, a World Golf Championship and the PGA Championship in consecutive starts, which enabled him to win PGA Tour player of the year for the second time in three seasons. He also won the Vardon Trophy and the PGA Tour money title.

He played in the PGA Grand Slam of Golf last week in Bermuda, a 36-hole exhibition among current major champions. McIlroy finished a distant third.

ASH, England – Mikko Ilonen defeated top-seeded Henrik Stenson 3 and 1 in the final Sunday to win the World Match Play Championship.

Ilonen fought back from being 1 down after four holes against the fifth-ranked Swede on the London Club course at Ash in Kent. It was the 34-year-old Finn’s fifth European Tour victory and his second this season after winning the Irish Open.

Earlier Sunday, Ilonen ended Joost Luiten’s unbeaten run by beating the Dutchman 2 and 1 in the semifinals, while Stenson won 1 up at the last hole against George Coetzee of South Africa.

“While I didn’t play so well this morning, I didn’t make any mistakes this afternoon against Henrik,” said Ilonen. “(I) felt like I had a good chance to beat him and I did.”

Three years ago Ilonen’s career was in chaos, having sustained an ankle injury that required surgery and kept him out of the second half of the 2011 season.

However, after falling to 334th in the world rankings early in 2012, Ilonen has continued to improve. He finished 23rd on the money list last year.

Stenson seized the early initiative, winning the fourth with a birdie. But Ilonen took the next hole with a par and went 1 up with a birdie at the eighth. He increased his lead to 3 up by the 12th.

Stenson won the 13th with a birdie but Ilonen hit back immediately to stay 3 up at the 14th.

However, Stenson then birdied the par-five 15th to get back to 2 down before both players parred the 16th and Ilonen won with a birdie at the 17th.

“I was quite low on energy this afternoon and I also feel like I have been battling my swing in these windy conditions,” Stenson said.

Victory earned Ilonen his highest tour prize of 650,000 euros ($830,000)

In the third-place playoff, Luiten defeated Coetzee at the first extra hole.

HONG KONG – Scott Hend beat Angelo Que of the Philippines in a playoff to win the Hong Kong Open on Sunday and become the first Australian to win the event since Greg Norman in 1983.

Que and Hend both ended the final round tied on 13-under 267 to force a playoff on the par-four 18th hole of the Fanling Course at the Hong Kong Golf Club.

Hend held his nerve to win on the first playoff hole with a par putt from five feet having watched Que bogey after failing to reach the green with his approach shot.

“I felt quite calm on that playoff. We were wondering how to play that hole because the pin was placed in a tricky position and you can easily make a bogey. It would have been nice to win with a birdie and on a positive note but I will take it,” said Hend.

It was the biggest win of the 41-year-old Hend’s career that includes five victories on the Asian Tour. With the tournament being co-sanctioned by the European Tour, it will allow the Florida-based Australian to play next season on the more lucrative tour.

“This victory is to be treasured,” said the delighted Hend as he kissed the trophy won previously by several accomplished players including Tom Watson, Norman, Jose Maria Olzabal, Bernhard Langer, Padraig Harrington, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Rory McIlroy.

Hend had begun the day one shot behind sole leader Marcus Fraser of Australia who was on 11 under. With the chasing pack never far behind, neither was able to build much of a lead.

Fraser lost his lead immediately when he double-bogeyed the first hole allowing England’s Mark Foster, who had started on nine-under, to grab the lead with two birdies from his first two holes.

The lead then changed hands again with Que, who had also started the final round on nine-under, rolling in three birdies on the 12, 13th and 14th to jump to a one shot advantage on 12 under.

Hend regained the lead at 13-under before Que pulled off a magnificent approach shot to within a foot of the pin from the edge of the woods lining the 18th fairway that allowed him to birdie the last hole and also go to 13 under.

“That was the shot of my career. My goal today was to just go under par but this is even better,” said Que after carding a 66.

He then waited as Hend in the final group came in. The Australian didn’t blink and finished his regulation round also on the same score forcing the play-off.

Ireland’s Kevin Phelan finished third on 11 under while Foster was fourth on 10 under.

Four-time major winner Ernie Els, struggling with a sore right hip, could only manage two birdies in his final round to end his first appearance at the Hong Kong Open on a disappointing note, tied fifth, after carding a one-under 69 to finish on nine-under 271.

“It is very disappointing, I didn’t play well at all this weekend,” said Els who had led by two shots at the halfway mark. “I’m having trouble with my hip and the lower I go down, the more a nerve or something catches. If I can sort my hip out I have got a game good enough to win a tournament before the end of this year.”

Els is on a month-long Asian swing and will play at the Macau Open next week before heading to China and Malaysia.

“My hip has been bothering me for a while and it will not keep me out of playing in the rest of the tournaments. I will bite the bullet and hope an elbow can improve my condition. Maybe I might even do some Chinese acupuncture,” Els said.

ASH, England – Mikko Ilonen of Finland ended Joost Luiten’s unbeaten run to set up a final later Sunday against top-seeded Henrik Stenson of Sweden at the World Match Play Championship.

Ilonen defeated his Dutch rival 2 and 1, while Stenson won 1 up at the last hole against South African George Coetzee, in the semifinal matches at the London Club course at Ash in Kent outside London.

Irish Open winner Ilonen was 2 up over Luiten after seven holes before Luiten, who won all three of his group games, went 1 up after winning Nos. 8, 11 and 13.

The Finn rebounded by winning the 14th and holing a long putt at the 15th, before claiming victory with a birdie on the 17th.

“It was an unbelievable match as it could have gone any way as we both didn’t play our best and with the early tee-time today we were still both asleep,” said Ilonen. “But somehow I managed to make two long putts near the end.”

Stenson wasn’t in front until the last when he holed a long par putt to beat Coetzee, a player ranked 84 places lower than the Swede.

Stenson is looking for his first World Match Play Championship title.

“I had to dig deep to win my match as I was never in front till I holed that putt at the last,” Stenson said. “While it wasn’t the most well-played match this week, I still got the result.”

ASH, England – Joost Luiten extended his unbeaten run at the World Match Play Championship by easily defeating Spain’s Pablo Larrazabal 6 and 5 Saturday to move into the semifinals.

The Dutchman demoralized Larrazabal with seven birdies in overcast and wet conditions on the London Club course at Ash in Kent outside London, setting up a semifinal against Finland’s Mikko Ilonen.

In the other semifinal on Sunday, Henrik Stenson will take on George Coetzee of South Africa.

Stenson defeated Swedish compatriot Jonas Blixt by 2 holes with a birdie at the last, Coetzee eliminated American Patrick Reed 2 and 1.

Luiten won all three round-robin matches and was handed the first hole when Larrazabal found water guarding the green. He went on to win the second, fifth, sixth, seventh and the 11th before claiming victory with a par on the 13th.

“I had a great start with three birdies to be 2 up, so that was a really nice start and after that I just tried to keep going and tried to keep the momentum going,” Luiten said. “While I am unbeaten every match is a new game, and you can lose at any time. To have a 100 percent record doesn’t say anything in this format. So I just have to go out again tomorrow and try to do the same, and make birdies and try and beat your opponent.”

Ilonen defeated European Ryder Cup-winning rookie Victor Dubuisson 2 up in a see-saw match, with the Finn producing a bogey-free display while his French opponent three-putted on three of the four par-3s for bogey.

“It was a match that could have gone any way today but I was pretty confident I would come out in the end,” Illonen said. “But one of the keys for me this week is that I have not felt nervous compared to other occasions when I have competed in big tournaments.”

Coetzee, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 89, was never behind in his match against Reed.

“I was playing well coming into this week and the name of the game in match-play is not give away any holes and I managed to do that,” Coetzee said. “But you’re playing man-on-man and it’s the closest you get to contact sport in golf.”

HONG KONG – Marcus Fraser of Australia shot a 5-under 65 Saturday to take a one-shot lead after the third round of the Hong Kong Open, his first tournament after returning from an eight-month injury layoff.

Fraser had four birdies on his last six holes to move to 11-under 199 and sit one shot ahead of fellow Australian Scott Hend.

Fraser has not played since February after needing surgery on his left hand, and said he only started practicing again six weeks ago.

“No one is more surprised than I am,” Fraser said about being the leader. “It hasn’t been the best of eight months but when you go out and play like this, it makes it worth it, that’s for sure.”

Overnight leader Ernie Els struggled to find his touch with the putter as he made a 71, including a double-bogey and three bogeys to fall three shots behind the leader.

Els, who turned 45 on Friday, would have been in real trouble if not for an eagle on the par-five 13th hole which helped salvage his round somewhat.

“It was disappointing, an up-and-down day,” Els said. “But I still feel I’m in with a chance.”

Hend shot a 67 to sit one stroke ahead of a trio of players – South Africa’s Jbe Kruger, Angelo Que of the Philippines and England’s Mark Foster.

Foster made five birdies in a row from the 10th hole and added two more on Nos. 16 and 17, but then had a bogey on the last for a 66.

“That five-in-a-row was amazing and I just tried to keep the mentality going. I never thought for one moment that I was going to make so many,” Foster said.