Cameron Smith has taken the equal lead in the Australian PGA Championship, with a stack of other local hopes still in the mix heading into the final round.

After the entirety of Friday’s play was abandoned due to wet weather, players returned to the course at Royal Queensland on Saturday morning for a shortened 54-hole event.

Smith finished the day at 10-under par after spending a lot of the day behind South Africa’s Aldrich Potgieter, who was in control before dropping shots late to sit fourth.

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The 2022 Open Championship winner was embraced by his home fans after taking the lead, and they will be right behind him again as he vies for the top prize on Sunday.

Fellow Aussie hope Elvis Smylie went equal-top alongside Smith, with the experienced Marc Leishman in third spot on the leaderboard.

Young gun Harrison Crowe sits level with Jason Day at six-under par.

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Defending champion Min Woo Lee was in danger of missing the cut for the final round, but rallied late to force his way in and keep his slim hopes alive.

Earlier in the day, English outsider Jamie Rutherford brought the crowd to their feet, narrowly missing out on a hole-in-one, which also would have landed him a new car.

Rutherford sits well behind the leading pack, but fellow countrymen Matthew Southgate is just tied for sixth and remains an outside chance with a day to play.

The final day of play begins on Sunday morning (AEDT).