By Steve Scott, golf correspondent

LEE HARPER found himself reeled back by two late errors but is still relishing a battle with co-leader Chris Doak and their pursuers in today’s final round of the Northern Open at Spey Valley in Aviemore.

The diminutive Archerfield player seemed to have gained control of the £45,000 tournament on a third day of glorious sunshine in Strathspey when he reached the 16th tee five-under for the day and 10-under overall, two shots ahead of halfway leader Doak, the 2005 champion.

However, the 26-year-old found himself putting backwards to a tricky pin position on the 16th green and three-putted for bogey and then overshot the final green to drop another shot and fall into a tie with Doak, two strokes ahead of Euan Little and last year’s Tartan Tour runner-up Paul McKechnie.

Robert Arnott and Jason McCreadie are also within five shots of the lead and in contention as the Scottish region pros are slowly getting to grips with the testing Highland layout ringed with thick heather.

For the 26-year-old Harper, even the finish couldn’t take the gloss off his day as he became the first man to deprive Doak of the lead all week.

“It was a bit of a disappointment to finish with those two, but then again I’d have taken 69 on the first tee this morning, no problem,” he said.

“In actual fact they were two pretty god shots, but I just went to the wrong area of the green on 16, 10 feet to the left and it would have been fine.

“I had to putt backwards to get anywhere near the hole and three-putted and then I was just too big and over the back of the last green and couldn’t get up and down.”

Harper remains happy that he’s in position to win what he would regard as another significant step in his young career.

“These are guys with significant European Tour experience and have played in countless big tournaments, so competing with them is exactly where would like to be, because I hope that’s where I’m going,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge and competing with Chris tomorrow because it was good fun today.”

Doak’s 70 was enough to keep him a tie for first and he believes that he and his fellow competitors are slowly getting accustomed to Spey Valley.

“That’s six rounds now and we should be finding our feet out there,” he said. “The amount of heather can be a bit intimidating but for me personally that’s good, for me it’s ‘feel the fear, and then do it anyway’.

“There’s been some good rounds out there today and I believe we’re going to get some tougher weather coming in so we’ll see what’s required tomorrow.”

Preferred lies on the first day means there is no official course record for McKechnie after a brilliant 66, easily the best score recorded on the course in its two years of existence.

The 30-year-old from Glasgow, a former winner of the EuroPro Tour who is now playing the Tartan Tour full time, found the heather on the 11th for his only bogey but made seven birdies.

“We’re finding our way around now even if the pins were in some tough positions today,” he said.

“The heather is tough but it’s a great golf course that punishes bad shots and rewards good ones, which is all you can ask for.”

Little, also based on his home circuit now after failing to regain his tour card last year, shot a superb 67 to join McKechnie on six-under for the tournament, with Tartan Tour stalwart Robert Arnott shooting 69 to claim fifth, one ahead of 2004 and 2006 Northern Open champion McCreadie.

Scotland amateur international squad member Mark Hillson from Craigielaw needs only to negotiate today’s final round to claim the Bookless Cup for the highest amateur finisher.

Leading third round scores and totals (Par 72, * denotes amateur):

208—L Harper (Archerfield Links) 70 69 69, C Doak (Unattached) 68 70 70.

210—P McKechnie (Braid Hills) 73 71 66, E Little (County Tipperary) 71 72 67.

212—R Arnott (Bishopbriggs) 72 71 69.

213—J McCreadie (Buchanan Castle) 70 70 73.

214—D Orr (East Renfrewshire) 73 73 68, G Hutcheon (Peterculter) 72 70 72.

215—A Hunter (Mearns Castle) 75 71 69, A Oldcorn (Kings Acre) 71 70 74.

216—E Thomson (Largs) 76 68 72.

217—I Campbell (unattached) 74 73 70, C Kelly (Cawder) 72 74 71.

218—R Cameron (McDonald) 76 71 71.

219—K Campbell (Machrihanish) 72 76 71, S Henderson (Kings Links) 71 75 73, *M Hillson (Craigielaw) 72 72 75, M Barnard (Inchmarlo) 71 73 75, G Dingwall (Royal Dornoch) 71 72 76, C Gillies (Kingsfield) 71 72 76, S Gray (Hayston) 72 69 78.

220—T Buchanan (Duddingston) 73 76 71, M Loftus (Cowglen) 73 72 75, S Cairns (Westerwood) 71 74 75, K Hutton (Downfield) 72 72 76, G McBain (Royal Dornoch) 71 73 76.

221—S Duncan (Balbirnie Park) 70 78 73, G Lornie (Unattached) 73 74 74.

222—J McGhee (Turnhouse) 73 76 73, S Rettie (All Golf Swing Centre) 70 77 75, A Webster (Edzell) 70 76 76, E Cameron (Hamilton) 71 72 79.

223—C Russell (RAW Golf Course Design) 76 73 74, A Tait (Spey Valley) 74 75 74, S McNally (Scottish Institute of Sport) 74 73 76, C Nicoll (Prestwick) 73 73 77.

224—S Taylor (Bothwell Castle) 74 75 75, D Robertson (Mearns Castle) 69 79 76, C Campbell (Carnegie Club) 70 75 79, C Ronald (Carluke) 74 71 79.

225—C Elliott (Haggs Castle) 71 78 76, M Urquhart (Inverness) 71 77 77, A Lockhart (Ladybank) 73 75 77, L Mann (Carnoustie) 74 73 78, A Reid (West Lothian) 74 72 79, E Davie (Dunblane New) 69 74 82.