Conover, NC – David Steele played 30 events on the eGolf Professional Tour before finally making his first cut at last week's Grand Harbor Open in Ninety Six, SC. Chris Thompson is a former Nationwide Tour player who has multiple wins on various tours, but has not won in nearly a year. The two players, with slightly different resumes, share the 54-hole lead heading into the final round of the $235,000 HGM Hotels Classic at Rock Barn.

Entering Friday's third round on the Robert Trent Jones course at Rock Barn Golf Club in Conover, NC, Thompson found himself in a tie for the 36-hole lead with Tommy Gibson of Pilot Mountain, NC. Playing in the day's final threesome, the two needed to only look one group forward to see the day's best story developing in front of them.

Just one week ago, with rounds of 68-68-75-73—284, Steele made the first cut of his eGolf Tour career. With that made cut, a streak of 30 missed cuts dating back to the 2006 season came to an abrupt halt, in turn giving the former Florida Gulf Coast University golfer that sly tint of confidence that is needed to compete on any level.

Beginning Friday's third round at 11-under and two shots shy of the leaders, Steele went about his business as if it was just any other round and posted a bogey-free 66 to grab a share of the 54-hole lead at 17-under 198. His laidback attitude carried over well after the completion of the round and allowed him to keep any complicated summations fairly simple.

"I played solid, kept the ball in the fairway and made some putts," said the 27-year-old Steele. "What I saw was what I got."

After graduating from FGCU in 2005, Steele split time between mini-tours and a caddie position at the prestigious Old Collier Golf Club in Naples, FL. Focusing his caddie efforts from October through April each winter, he would grab 6-10 loops each week and try to keep his dream of playing the PGA TOUR afloat.

"Caddying keeps you busy, but it also keeps you on the golf course and making some money," said Steele, who made $1,122 after finishing T66 last week.

Through persistence and patience, he was able to keep at it and keep his head held high, but it was never easy.

"I've made a bunch of cuts other places, this tour just held me back for a while," Steele said after his round. "I'm now trying to stay with my game and not get too excited. I used to get easily frustrated, always thinking ‘here we go again.'"

The made cut produced some obvious elation in Steele, but even that was a bit of a surprise. Heading into last week, in three prior 2010 starts, Steele had only broken par once (a first-round 71 at the Cowans Ford Open) on the season. The aforementioned confidence is a powerful ingredient when determining whether a golfer is good enough to win, and Steele may have found just enough of it.

Chris Thompson"I made my first cut last week, which is kind of crazy, so I just built on that and I've kept it going," said Steele, who calls Naples home. "I know it's in there, it's just getting it out and staying focused. It's nice to finally see some results on this tour – if you can play and win out here, you can play and win anywhere."

For Thompson, a third-round 68 allowed the former Kansas University "All American" to maintain a share of the lead with Steele, in turn matching his 17-under 198 total.

Thompson, who still calls Lawrence, KS home, has played the Nationwide Tour and various developmental tours for the better part of the last decade. Playing his way into the final pairing is par for the course for one of the Jayhawks' most decorated collegiate players.

With his last win coming in the Midwest last July, Thompson still draws on the confidence that day provided, much like Steele looks to the week prior for his.

"I played with a lot more confidence last year after I won," said Thompson, soon to become a father of two. "It had been four years before that (since his last win). Any time you win, you're playing good, but you can take that forward and exude more confidence in yourself."

While Steele may experience a whole new level of nerves and anticipation tomorrow, Thompson simply reflected back on similar situations in times past – his veteran side shining through.

Tommy Biershenk"Everyone gets nervous down the stretch, but the more you're there, the more you know what your body does in those situations," he said. "I'm happy where I'm at."

Two-time eGolf Tour winner Tommy Biershenk of Boiling Springs, SC is alone in third following rounds of 66-63-68—199. A former Nationwide Tour player and Clemson University star, Biershenk has been knocking on the winner's door lately with two top-5 finishes in his last three starts on tour.

Gibson, at the ripe age of 21, played well in his first time playing in the day's final pairing. A plethora of pars were interrupted by a bogey-birdie-birdie streak from Nos. 5-7 and a bogey-birdie stretch on 13 and 14. A closing birdie at the par-5 18th gave him a third-round 70 and kept him two shots shy of the leaders at 15-under 200 through 54 holes.

The round of the day came from Brazil native Fernando Mechereffe. The former N.C. State "All American" carded a third-round 64 to move from T41 to T5 on the week, with a 54-hole total of 14-under 201.

Final-round play in the HGM Hotels Classic will begin at 7:30 AM, with players competing in threesomes off of No. 1 tee on the Jones course. The tournament is open to the public and free of charge.