Matt Wallace has admitted the prospect of a first win on the European Tour is “big” but he will “try and dumb it down as much as possible” when he starts his final round at the Open de Portugal this afternoon.

After a stunning first two rounds in which the Moor Park Golf Club professional opened up a five-shot lead on 17-under-par, the 27-year-old admitted he struggled in the windy conditions as he shot an even-par 73 to see his advantage reduced to three shots from Germany’s Sebastian Heisele going into the final 18 holes.

Wallace told the European Tour website: "It wasn't very good today, I lost a bit of rhythm out there and just struggled really to get it round.”

"I'd have liked to have been a couple better and that would have given me more of a cushion going into tomorrow.

"It is what it is and I'm going to prepare as well as I can for tomorrow."

The tournament holds shared status with the Challenge Tour and carries the extra incentive of a European Tour exemption until the end of 2018 for the winner.

Wallace has experience of winning from the front during his historic sequence of six victories on the Alps Tour last year and he said after completing his third round yesterday: "I've been playing great, I've been giving it my best, I'm really looking forward to the situation tomorrow.

"It could have been much worse out there for me today; I battled really hard and made some good putts to save some pars. Hopefully I can put as much effort in tomorrow as I did today and play a bit better and hopefully I'll be here tomorrow with the trophy.

"This week is the best I've probably played ever so I'm going to take that confidence into tomorrow. Hopefully play as well as I did the first two days.

"I'm very confident, I'm just going to do my game, not worry about what else happens and hopefully with the lead I've got it will be enough.

"It is big but I try and dumb it down as much as possible - it's just golf and I'm just going to go and give it my best."

The first two rounds had seen only birdies and pars on Wallace’s scorecard and it took until the 39th hole of the tournament for him to drop a shot at the par five third, only for it to be instantly retrieved at the par four fourth.

The Pinner resident dropped another shot at the par four sixth but a birdie for the third successive round at the par four ninth saw him go out in a level-par 36.

Wallace also birdied the par four 12th for the third straight time to move to 18-under, but dropped that shot at the next hole, the par five 13th.

A fourth birdie of the day was secured at the par four 15th, but Wallace had to settle for an even-par round after bogeying the par three 17th.