Ayora, Jarvis in the lead as Magical Kenya Open heads to business end

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Spanish golfer Angel Ayora fired a third-round six-under-par 64 to take a share of the lead alongside South Africa’s Casey Jarvis in the penultimate round of the Magical Kenya Open at Karen Golf Club on Saturday.

Ayora, who plays out of La Hacienda Golf Resort, produced a bogey-free round highlighted by six birdies to match his opening round score and go one better than his second round 65. He joined Jarvis at the top of the leaderboard, with the South African sharing the lead with a different opponent for the third consecutive day.

Both players now sit on 17 under par, one stroke ahead of American Davis Bryant and South Africa’s Hennie Du Plessis, who are tied for second on 16 under.

Jarvis shared the first-round lead with Sweden’s Niklas Lemke after both carded an eight-under-par 62 on Wednesday. Frenchman Frederic Lacroix then shot a second-round 62 to move into a share of the halfway lead with Jarvis on 135.

Njoroge Kibugu acknowledges fans during the third round of the Magical Kenya Open at Karen, February 21, 2026. (Photo by Michael Nsubuga)

Ayora picked up birdies at the second and seventh holes before adding three consecutive birdies at the 10th, 11th and 12th. He capped his round with another birdie on the par-five 18th. Bogeys at the 10th and 17th holes meant Jarvis was unable to pull clear of his challengers, with his playing partner dropping at least two strokes in each round.

"Ayora is a fantastic player, and I think tomorrow we'll both hopefully push each other and we'll see what happens," Jarvis said.

On his part, Ayora is aiming to replicate his third-round form in what remains an open contest among the top eight players, all seeking their first DP World Tour victory.

"I think the most important thing on this course is to be good from the second shot to the green and the putting, and I think if you have opportunities to make it, you've got to take it," Ayora noted.

Kenya’s Njoroge Kibugu returned a third-round four-over-par 74, slipping three strokes heading into the final round after bogeys at the first, third, fourth, ninth and 15th holes. His only birdie came at the par-five 18th, resulting in a drop down the leaderboard.

Five former champions, including Jacques Kruyswijk 2025, Darius Van Driel 2024, Jorge Campillo 2023, Justin Harding 2021 and Guido Migliozzi 2019, remain in contention as they chase a share of the prize money.

The winner of this year’s event will earn sh1.7b, with the last-placed finisher guaranteed at least sh18m.

Leaderboard: Top 10

Angel Ayora (SPA) 64 65 64 -17

Case Jarvis (SA) 62 65 66 -17

Davis Bryant (USA) 67 63 64 -16

Hennie Du Plessis (SA) 68 61 65 -16

Francesco Laporta (FRA) 66 64 65 -15

Nathan Kimsey (ENG) 66 66 64 -14

Jacob Skov Olesen (DEN) 67 64 65 -14

Ricardo Gouveia (POR) 64 65 67 -14

Aaron Cockerill (CAN) 66 69 62 -13

Ryan Van Velzen (SA) 66 65 66 -13