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Norwegian PGA Tour rookie Viktor Hovland will take a one-shot lead into the final round of the Puerto Rico Open as Australia's hopes of a title winner faded on Saturday.

Hovland carded a bogey-free eight-under 64 to move to 18-under as he chases a maiden win on the PGA Tour.

"Hopefully, I just continue doing what I have been doing the first three days," tour rookie Hovland said.

"It would be unbelievable to have won on the tour already but I'm just worried about tomorrow.

"Hopefully, I can hit some good shots and make some putts."

The 22-year-old starred at Oklahoma State, winning the 2018 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach, then sweeping low amateur honours at the Masters and US Open.

Hovland birdied all four par-5 holes at Coco Beach, the last on the 18th for a back-nine 31 and 18-under 198 total.

"I played really well today, kind of the same round as the last two, just been playing really solid off the tee and been hitting a lot of really good iron shots into the greens," Hovland said.

Scotland's Martin Laird is second after a course record-equalling 63.

He eagled the par-5 second and par-4 10th, holing out with a wedge on 10.

"Today was a great day, putts were going in," Laird said.

"I've been hitting it great all week. Yesterday, I hit it just as good and just putts were all over the hole and didn't go in and then today, they did.

"Nice bonus on 10. Holing a wedge is always a little boost."

American Josh Teater was also bogey-free in his third round as he sat in sole third place at 16 under, while fellow overnight co-leader Emiliano Grillo was three shots further back in fourth.

Kyle Stanley, who led after the opening round and was co-leader after the second, mixed four birdies and three bogeys to drop to seventh.

An even-par 72 on moving day resulted in Australian Rhein Gibson sliding from sixth to 25th at eight under while his compatriot Cameron Davis (69) is a shot further back.

Cameron Percy (70) at five-under and John Senden (73) are three-under round out the Australian contingent.

Jon Rahm had a hole-in-one at the World Golf Championship event in Mexico on his way to a course record 61 but he still finds himself four shots behind third-round leader Justin Thomas.

Thomas started and ended his round with bogeys but he was at his best in the 16 holes between, running off eight birdies for a six-under 65 to be 15-under.

Two years after losing a playoff to Phil Mickelson, Thomas has a chance to avenge that near-miss and claim a 13th PGA Tour victory and third this season.

"I really want that first place. I definitely feel like I have a bit of unfinished business here," Thomas said.

The American world No.4 was five shots behind in the middle of his front nine at Chapultepec Golf Club but wound up with a one-shot lead over Patrick Reed and South Africa's Erik Van Rooyen (both 67s).

However, no one illustrated how quickly fortunes can change like Rahm, who started the third round 10 shots out of the lead and goes into Sunday in the penultimate group.

The Spaniard opened with six birdies in seven holes - four of those birdies from inside four feet - and really excited the crowd with a gap wedge on the par-3 17th that took one big hop and disappeared into the cup for an ace.

That carried him to a remarkable 10-under 61, the low round of his young career.

Better yet, Rahm is in the mix in Mexico, tied for fourth at 11-under along with world No.1 Rory McIlroy (68) and Bryson DeChambeau (71).

"I'm just really happy that after the first two days I'm going to have a legitimate chance tomorrow without needing to shoot 59 or something like that," the world No.3 Rahm said.

England compatriots Tyrrell Hatton and Paul Casey both carded rounds of 66 to be at 10-under and sharing seventh.

Youngster Zach Murray, in his debut WGC appearance having earnt his place in the field via his position on last year's PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit, is best of the Australians in a share of 15th at four-under after a 69.

The 22-year-old is the world No.430 but it certain to soar up the rankings after this week.

Next best of the Aussies is Adam Scott, last week's winner on the PGA Tour, after a 68 left him at three-under while Marc Leishman (68) is one-under.

Cameron Smith, Lucas Herbert and Scott Hend are all over par.

Sydney teenager Stephanie Kyriacou is a smooth round away from the biggest win of her golfing career after the amateur forged a two-shot lead with 18 holes to play in the Australian Ladies Classic.

Kyriacou produced an almost faultless display at the Bonville Golf Resort on Saturday to eclipse overnight leader Lauren Stephenson and world No.35-ranked South Korean Ayean Cho.

Buoyed by a career-best nine-under 63 on Friday which left her in outright third, two stroke shy of Stephenson, Kyriacou carded a 69 while the American and Cho faltered with rounds of 73 apiece.

Kyriacou improved to 15-under for the Ladies European Tour co-sanctioned event, Stephenson has a one shot buffer over Cho after finishing at 13-under.

The Australian started nervously with a bogey but quickly recovered to nab birdies on the second and 4th.

She faltered again with a double-bogey on the 6th but the NSW representative regrouped again to complete a faultless back nine to post the lowest three-round total in the tournament's history.

"I think this week is the first time I've shot under par on this course. I was pretty confident coming into the tournament," said Kyriacou, who is playing the event for the third time.

"I didn't have any hopes of being in contention, but I thought that my game was there."

Kyriacou said she had trouble sleeping after her 63 and had a dream that she had forgotten to mark her ball on the green.

Then nerves kicked in once the sun rose.

"When a few more people came out to watch I was a bit scared, especially over my last putt which was only two foot, but I was very nervous," she said.

"I don't think I've ever been in contention for a pro tournament, especially going into the last round, so it's pretty cool."

Australian Rhein Gibson maintained touch with the Puerto Rico Open leaders, as Kyle Stanley was reeled in on day two at Coco Beach.

The 32-year-old American enjoyed a two-shot advantage after the opening round but he ended Friday (Saturday AEDT) as co-leader with three other players on 10-under par.

Stanley, looking for his third PGA Tour title, had four birdies and two bogeys in his second-round 70, which allowed compatriot Josh Teater, Argentinian Emiliano Grillo and Norwegian Viktor Hovland to close the gap.

Gibson followed up his opening day 66 with a second-round 70, meaning he sits two shots behind the leaders at eight-under.

Hovland, the 22-year-old from Oslo looking for his first PGA Tour title, had an eagle and five birdies in his six-under-par 66.

Grillo ended his second round with back-to-back birdies on the eighth and the ninth for a 68, the same score that Teater managed after an eagle, four birdies and two bogeys.

Sam Ryder produced a flawless round of 65 and lies one shot behind the leaders, while Gibson is tied with three others a further shot back.

There are 17 further players within four shots of the leaders as the tournament heads into the weekend.

Cameron Davis, John Senden (both four-under) and Cameron Percy (three-under) are the three remaining Australians in the field after Robert Allenby (three-over) missed the cut.

Bryson DeChambeau kept making so many birdies in the Mexico Championship that when he rolled in his ninth one from 45 feet, all he could do was throw his hands in the air in pure wonder.

He wasn't alone Friday (Saturday AEDT) in making birdies, although Rory McIlroy would like to have joined the party.

DeChambeau made seven birdies in an eight-hole stretch at Chapultepec for an eight-under 63, giving him a one-shot lead over Erik van Rooyen of South Africa and Patrick Reed at the halfway point of this World Golf Championship.

Van Rooyen had nine birdies and tied the course record with a 62, while Reed made five birdies on the back nine for a 63.

DeChambeau was at 11-under 131.

"It was a lot of fun," DeChambeau said.

"Making those putts the way I did, striking the ball the way I did, it's surely a joy out there.

"The confidence has got to be high. It is high and it's a lot of fun to see putts finally going in. Overall everything is going pretty well, firing on all cylinders."

The highest-placed Australian was Zach Murray, who sits nine shots behind DeChambeau at two-under after his second round 69.

Compatriots Adam Scott (even), Marc Leishman (two-over), Cameron Smith (four-over) and Scott Hend (five-over) were even further down the leaderboard at the conclusion of the second round.

American Justin Thomas ran off four straight birdies to end the back nine, and then holed a 35-foot eagle putt to build a three-shot lead, which was gone in a matter of four holes as player after player kept rolling in putts on a day with much less wind and far better scoring.

McIlroy wasn't so fortunate.

Staked to a two-shot lead at the start of the day, he opened with eight straight pars, didn't make a birdie until his 12th hole and fell six shots behind at one point.

Two birdies at the end gave him a 69, and the world's No.1 player was only three shots behind.

Lauren Stephenson's superb eagle on the last capped another impressive round at the Australian Ladies Classic in Coffs Harbour, to give the American a one-stroke lead at the midway point.

Stephenson's precision en route to the Bonville Golf Resort clubhouse on Friday enabled the opening round leader to preserve her status ahead of South Korea's Ayean Cho.

Stephenson carded an eight-under 64 to improve to 14-under for the Ladies European Tour co-sanctioned event.

Cho, 19, matched Stephenson's 64 to sit a shot ahead of Australian amateur Stephanie Kyriacou, who produced the round of the day - a nine-under 63.

"I haven't looked at any leader boards or anything. I'm just figuring out my game," Stephenson said.

The 22-year-old world No.179 posted five birdies on the front nine, but her charge stalled with a double bogey on the 13th.

However, she bounced back with birdies on 14, 15 and 17 before finishing in style with an eagle on the 477-yard par-5 18th.

"I hit a brilliant drive down the middle of the fairway on 18 and then I had 210 yards in, which is the perfect number for my 5-wood," she said.

"I hit a really good 5-wood and I had 15 feet for eagle ... I've been making those all day, so I kept the same rhythm."

Cho and Stephenson go head to head over the weekend and the American was relishing the challenge after watching her tie for sixth in the Women's Australian Open.

"I have never played with her before but I know she's played really well the last two weeks," Stephenson said.

Kyriacou, who sits alone in third, recorded five birdies and eagles on the seventh and 18th to keep her title hopes alive.

Australia's Rhein Gibson is among the chasing pack after the opening day of the PGA Tour's Puerto Rico Open.

Gibson fired a six-under-par 66 at Coco Beach Golf Course on Thursday to be two shots behind leader Kyle Stanley.

The 34-year-old Victorian made eight birdies with two bogeys to join Americans Peter Uihlein, Josh Teater and Chris Couch, Argentina's 2015 runner-up Emiliano Grillo and Sweden's Henrik Norlander in a six-way tie for second.

Gibson put his bogey on the first behind him to shoot birdies on the second, sixth and seventh holes to be two under on the front nine.

He then birdied 12, 13 and 14 before a bogey on 16 stymied his progress. However, he finished strong with further birdies on 17 and the last.

Cameron Davis is the next best Australian, his three-under 69 securing him a tie for 20th.

John Senden and Cameron Percy are a further shot back with Robert Allenby even par.

The 32-year-old Stanley, who is looking for his third PGA Tour title, recorded a flawless back nine which included four birdies before making five further gains on the front nine.

The $US3 million ($A4.5 million) Puerto Rico Open is up for grabs with the world's leading players all locked in battle at the World Golf Championships in Mexico.

Lauren Stephenson was the leading beneficiary as ideal weather conditions and a vulnerable back nine facilitated low scoring in the opening round of the Australian Ladies Golf Classic in Coffs Harbour.

The American posted a six-under 66 at the Bonville Golf Resort on Thursday to hold a one stroke lead over a group including Australia's Breanna Gill.

Stephenson, in her second year as a professional, was rapt to launch on the user-friendly back nine - the cornerstone of her seven birdies.

"I started off with a birdie on my second hole (the 10th) and then just continued that and had three birdies in a row," Stephenson said.

"Those holes are really scoreable."

Stephenson added the key was to have a few birdies under her belt before the tough part of the course began.

"The back nine is obviously really important, and it was great going into some of the harder holes, knowing that I already had a couple of birdies.

"There's a lot of good par fives, and a lot of birdie chances, but there are also a lot of tough holes where you have to scramble for par."

Stephenson's biggest disappointment was missing a short putt on the 16th to record her only bogey.

"Unfortunately my bogey was from a missed short, short putt but I made a lot of really good putts on the other holes so I can't be too upset," she said.

Gill had South Korea's world No.35 Korean Ayean Cho, compatriot Min A Yoon plus Scotland's Gemma Dryburgh and Finn Noora Komulainen for company at five-under.

Sweden's Lina Boqvist and Leona Maguire (Ireland) were a shot further back while the next Australian on the leaderboard was amateur Stephanie Kyriacou at three-under.

Victorian veteran David Bransdon will take a two-shot lead into the second day of the Queensland Open thanks to a course record nine-under par 63 on the Sunshine Coast.

World No. 570 Bransdon - a winner of the trophy five years ago - was six under through seven holes, finishing with his bogey-free opening round with nine birdies at the Greg Norman-designed Pelican Waters course on Thursday.

Amateurs Jack Thompson (SA) and Josh Armstrong (ACT) and the in-form Brad Kennedy all equalled the previous course record of 65 to finish the day in a share for second two strokes back.

Anthony Quayle, Matias Sanchez and Andre Lautee are a further two shots back in a tie for fifth.

Japan Tour regular Bransdon's was an eventful group to follow, playing partner Jason Norris acing the par-three sixth on his way to an even par round.

The 46-year-old conceded he began the tournament thinking a score between nine and 13-under would be enough to win it.

"(I didn't think) nine (under) was out there in one day," Bransdon said.

"I holed a couple of nice putts early and then hit a couple in close ... the putter was pretty good all day."

Defending champion Jordan Zunic will start the second round at one-over while teenager Sarah Wilson (two-over) remains in the mix to make the cut after becoming the second female in the event's 95 years to qualify.

An island golf course where "you feel like you're playing on the edge of the world" has almost pipped perennial No.1 Royal Melbourne West for the top ranking in Australia.

Cape Wickham, on King Island in Bass Strait, leapfrogged Kingston Heath into second place on Australian Golf Digest's biennial ranking of the top 100 courses when the list was released on Thursday.

The Tasmanian links course was only completed in 2015 but almost immediately shot to international recognition and has been voted in the top 25 in the world.

Royal Melbourne has topped 16 of the 17 Australian Golf Digest rankings - in 2010 it dropped to third due to drought conditions.

But Digest editor Steve Keipert said Cape Wickham was closing the gap and could take top spot next time.

"It's an amazing golf course in an even more amazing setting," Keipert said.

"It's susceptible to all kinds of weather but it's really smartly-designed to the location it's in, just really cleverly planned given it's such a volatile location and climate.

"It's an amazing experience - you feel like you're playing golf on the edge of the world.

"This is the third top-three ranking for Cape Wickham since it opened and based on the way its progressed it definitely could become No.1.

"But we're also coming off the back of a really successful Presidents Cup which was another reminder of what a great course Royal Melbourne is.

"So many people see it as our eternal No.1 but Cape Wickham can't be ruled out."

Mount Compass in South Australia was the biggest improver and leapt 23 places to 73rd, while Twin Creeks in Sydney dropped 18 spots to 93rd and seven courses fell off the list.

The 2020 edition is the first ranking period when no new courses were built and Keipert expects that trend to continue due to the scarcity of available land near populous areas.

Cairns course Paradise Palms had never missed a spot in the rankings but closed for residential development, while Brisbane's North Lakes faced the same predicament.

Digest's judging panel was boosted from 45 to 182 people in a bid to give a better representation of the entire country and a more accurate assessment.

The Packer family's invite-only course Ellerston dropped three spots to 10th, while Clive Palmer's Coolum course jumped back into the rankings at 97.

Tasmania boasted three of the top seven courses while Victoria and NSW filled out the rest of the top 10.

There are between 1500 and 1600 golf courses in Australia and Keipert confirmed club memberships have continued their slow decline.

Australian Golf Digest Top 10 courses:-

1. Royal Melbourne West (Vic) 2. Cape Wickham (Tas) 3. Kingston Heath (NSW) 4. Barnbougle Dunes (Tas) 5. New South Wales (NSW) 6. Peninsula Kingswood North (Vic) 7. Barnbougle Lost Farm (Tas) 8. Royal Melbourne East (Vic) 9. Victoria (Vic) 10. Ellerston (NSW).