Paarl, 21 December 2008: By Retief Goosen’s normally humble standards, it was probably the boldest statement he’s made in some time. And you can bet it felt good for him to say it.

"I’m back in it," he said after climbing to within three strokes of the lead of Lee Westwood going into the final round of the South African Open at Pearl Valley Golf Estates.

For the immediate future, "back in it" means he was able to overcome a front nine of one over with a back nine of four under in Saturday’s third round to wrestle his way closer to the top of the leaderboard.

"It was a disappointing start and I thought after that first nine I was maybe out of the tournament. I struggled with my swing a bit. But I came back nicely on the back nine," Goosen said.

On a bigger scale, "back in it" could also represent Goosen’s state of mind at this stage of a career that has flagged a bit, with the highlights this year being three top-tens on the European Tour and a win in Asia.

"I hope so," he said when asked whether he was on track towards regaining his form of old.

"I’ve been working hard on my fitness and on my golf swing, and I feel like my putting has been better than it’s been in the past. If you can make putts, you can win. That’s the only way you can win tournaments. Hopefully I’m going to keep on hitting it solid and making putts."

As the leader of the South African challenge alongside his far younger countryman George Coetzee, Goosen is aware that Westwood will be hard to catch on the final day.

"We’re all going to have to shoot a low round to catch him," he said.

Similarly, Westwood is very aware of the kind of threat Goosen poses behind him.

"Anybody who has won two US Opens knows his way around a golf course," said the Englishman.

For Coetzee, a victory would be life-changing. The young Pretoria professional has won three times on the winter leg of the Sunshine Tour, and the next step for him is a major victory in the summer.

He’s threatened before with a few top-tens in the bigger tournaments, and has the game and an aggressive style of play that can certainly pull it off at Pearl Valley.

But his biggest obstacle will be overcoming a double US Open champion determined to regain his form, and a European Ryder Cup star desperate to claim his first victory of 2008.