Two birdies and two extravagant eagles stood out on the scorecard but the most important shot of Harold Varner III’s third round at the Australian PGA may have been a tricky putt for bogey which rounded out a day of spectacular play by the likeable American at Royal Pines on Queensland’s Gold Coast.

While it wasn’t the lowest round of the day – that honour belonged to England’s Steve Webster and his seven under par 65 – there was no question Varner III produced the most thrilling 18 holes in the penultimate round of the PGA, leaving himself with a realistic shot at atoning for last year’s playoff loss to Nathan Holman.

Starting the day alongside home-town hero Adam Scott and fellow Queenslander John Senden, Varner III waited until the 9th hole to record his first birdie. The best was yet to come. He got hot on the back nine with a pair of eagles and a birdie, moving to 12 under at the close of play, only two shots behind leader Andrew Dodt.

A bogey at the last undid some of his good work, although the damage could have been worse had he not made a putt which mitigated the damage. Varner III punched the air as the ball disappeared into the hole, perhaps realising how important it may be in the scheme of the tournament.

The importance of that putt was rammed home moments later when Dodt also made bogey at the last, meaning Varner III finished the day within touching distance of the lead.

"I finished amazingly well," Varner III said.

"Eagles are always good, and I had two in the last four. I got a little lucky on the 17th, because it hit the pin and went in when it could just as easily bounced off the green.

"My round was almost the reverse of Adam’s, because he had a really good front nine then I played well on the back nine.

"But it was tough out there. When the wind blows hard here you just need to try to hang in there and not make too many mistakes."

His two eagles came in the space of three holes, the second well worth celebrating. After belting his drive down the middle of the fairway, he took aim with his second and found the target, the ball skimming once before spinning in the hole.

At that point, Varner III was 13 under, only two shots behind Dodt. He dropped a shot at the last when he sprayed his drive into a fairway bunker and then missed the green with his second, but he remains in the thick of contention.

While Varner III has a realistic chance to win the tournament, Webster needs another low score if he is to contend on Sunday. He finished the third round at six under and admitted his only hope was to shoot a 62, a score some predicted was possible before the tournament but is yet to eventuate.

Nevertheless, there were positive signs for Webster after a round which featured eight birdies, including five in a row on the front nine.

"I took my time with the putter a bit more," Webster said.

"I rushed it the first couple of days I think and I saw the lines a bit better today. So that was it, the difference. I gave myself a few chances yesterday, played probably just as good yesterday, just didn’t quite make the putts but today I saw the lines better."