Golfer Michael Hendry defies battle with leukaemia to stay in contention at Australian PGA at Royal Queensland

Michael Hendry has pushed through the lingering pain of bone marrow treatment to move from below the cut line to the first page of the Australian PGA leaderboard.

The New Zealand veteran thought he had missed the cut at Royal Queensland when he walked off on Friday at even par.

But bogeys in the final groups dropped the line by a shot, allowing Hendry to sneak in before he carded a bogey-free 64 to soar to seven-under on Saturday.

Hendry sat inside the top 10 and just five shots back from the lead when he walked off the course.

‘I managed to make a scrappy par [on the 18th] and walking off I thought that was it for the weekend,’ he said after a flawless third round.

The 44-year-old was diagnosed in April, and returned to the tour at the Queensland PGA earlier this month

‘A bit of luck led to a positive outlook today and all of a sudden I had a good round.

‘When you are that far back, you are thinking ‘just go and play and have fun’.’

The 44-year-old was diagnosed with leukaemia in April, the illness ruining his plans after he had won his way into a British Open berth in July.

Following treatment, he returned to the tour at the Queensland PGA earlier this month, but was then back in New Zealand for treatment and missed last week’s Victorian PGA.

‘It’s painful even though I’m medicated but the day after there’s no pain, so that’s a real bonus because the first few really hurt for a few days,’ he said of the treatment he requires every three months.

‘At the moment it [treatment] seems to be doing what it’s told but who knows what the future holds.

‘We will just try to make hay while the sun shines.’

In-form Aussie Min Woo Lee is looking in ominous touch heading into day four on Sunday, with Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino and 2013 Masters champion Adam Scott also near the top of the leaderboard.