NEWPORT, Wales — Scott Strange maintained a three-shot lead after the third round of the Wales Open today, despite falling ill on the back nine.

The 31-year-old Australian, who began the day with a four-stroke lead, shot 2-under 69 to reach 15-under for the tournament. He led Spanish tour rookie Alvaro Velasco, who shot a third-round 68, on the Celtic Manor Twenty Ten course.

"Down 14 I felt flat, then walking up the hill on 15, I felt dizzy," said Strange, who added it never reached the point where he thought of quitting. "I had a banana, some water and some chocolate and felt better. But now I feel a bit queasy in my stomach."

Strange, who shot an opening-round 63, birdied the second, fourth and 11th holes and dropped his only shot at the 15th, where he felt ill.

"I'm very happy with where I'm sitting," he said. "Now I've got to close it out."

Velasco, who has already had two top-10 finishes this year, said extra work on his short game has been paying off this week.

"It wasn't very good at the beginning of the season but it is better now and I feel amazing confidence," he said. "I hope to be confident for one more day."

Three players shared third place — Jeev Milka Singh of India (69), Robert Karlsson of Sweden (68) and Raphael Jacquelin of France (68) — four strokes off the lead.

Singh said he planned to attack more in Sunday's final round.

"You have to position yourself well here, so you can't knock yourself out by being too aggressive," Singh said. "It all depends on the setup and how you assess the risk against the reward."

Thomas Levet was in a large group another shot back after a 6-under 65, the best round of the day. Despite being five shots back, Levet said he was still optimistic about the final round.

"Things can change quickly, as we've seen the last few weeks," the Frenchman said. "Even a leader can have trouble keeping the lead with four or five to go."