Staff WriterThere’s a calmness about Scott Vincent that makes you wonder whether he’s secretly got a metronome ticking inside him.
On a day when putts burned edges and nerves frayed like old rope, the Zimbabwean kept a bogey off his card and nudged one shot clear heading into the final round of the US$2 million International Series Morocco.
At Royal Golf Dar Es Salam — a bruising par-73 layout in Rabat — Vincent signed for a two-under 71 that was high on precision and low on fireworks.
He made just two birdies all day, but crucially, no mistakes. That second birdie came when it mattered most, on the 17th, and it nudged him one clear of Thailand’s Settee Prakongvech, who surged into contention with a rousing 67 but stumbled with a bogey at the last.
“It was great, a little challenging for me out there. I didn’t feel like I drove it particularly well, which just made it a little harder.
But all in all, it was nice, solid and steady, and always nice to play bogey-free,” said Vincent, whose last win came nearly three years ago at the 2022 International Series England.
Vincent’s round was one of only two bogey-free cards on the day — an indicator of just how tough the course was playing. The 33-year-old Denver resident made a birdie on the par-five 5th, then endured a long stretch of near-misses.
A ten-footer horseshoed out on the 16th. Another birdie putt died in the jaws on the 18th. It was the kind of round that would have worn down most players. Not Scott Vincent.
“The start was really the key. I made a couple of really good putts for par on two and three, and I think that really helped,” he added.
Prakongvech, meanwhile, was putting like a man trying to settle an argument with his golf ball — and mostly winning.
The 30-year-old from Chonburi, who finished runner-up at last week’s Asian Development Tour event in Marrakech, poured in eight birdies and saved par from Mars a couple of times.
“I felt like I played really good golf. Everything was good today, especially my putting. I had some bad shots, but I could come back with a par save,” said Prakongvech. “On some of the difficult holes, I made difficult saves with some long putts.”
He credited last week’s tournament — and the brutal Moroccan heat — with helping him acclimatise. “With the long flight from Thailand, I think coming one or two tournaments before has definitely helped me. And playing well last week, I gained confidence for this week.”
China’s Bobby Bai also threw himself into the mix with a 67 of his own, rising to third on nine-under.
His round featured seven birdies, but his Houdini act on the final hole stood out. After pulling his tee shot into the trees, Bai conjured a seven-iron from 227 yards to six feet and walked away with a par.
“I felt like I played well today. Iron play was good and got the putter going a little bit on the front nine,” said Bai. “On the 18th… Par was very good on that hole.”
A logjam of players — including Australians Jack Buchanan (68) and Maverick Antcliff (72), American Austen Truslow (69), and Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai (71) — sit two back in tied fourth at eight-under.
Peter Uihlein, a two-time winner on the International Series, was in touch until a costly bogey on the 18th dropped him to tied-eighth alongside China’s Yanwei Liu.
As the International Series Morocco — one of 10 elevated events feeding into the LIV Golf League — prepares for its closing act, it’s Scott Vincent who holds the high ground. With a tidy lead, a tidy card, and the poise of a man who’s been here before, he’s not trying to dazzle. Just deliver.
And so far, he’s doing exactly that.
