NEWS: The Latest from the Links

The Open 2005: Round Three

Tiger Woods leads The Open after Round Three but the gap has been halved to only two strokes.

Woods came home in 71 as he struggled to come to terms with the Old Course playing in its truest links style, defended today by a stiff westerly cross-wind and fast-running fairways. Tiger was twice in the whin bushes, on the 6 th and the 9 th, and he often faced difficult chips from around greens he had run through. It took an extraordinary 50 yard putt at the last, lagged to within two inches, to give Woods his two shot cushion going into the final round. ‘I could actually feel the shaft flex in my putter,' said an amazed Woods afterwards.

His playing partner will once again be José Maria Olazábal, who was in the same group as Tiger in the first two rounds, and who returned a 68 to go to 10 under par. ‘I’ve had three great days on the golf course and I’m really enjoying myself this week,’ said the Spaniard who got into the tournament as first reserve following the withdrawal of Seve Ballesteros. ‘Obviously it’s a bonus to be here, just being at St Andrews. I do have a lot of respect for the golf course, for the tradition, for what it means, and just being able to be part of it this year is wonderful.’

Colin Montgomerie and Retief Goosen are both on 9 under. Goosen scored an excellent 66, only dropping a shot at the Road Hole. ‘I love St Andrews… I’ve played here since 1985,’ said the South African. ‘I played my first amateur tournament here. So I’ve played a few rounds and know it pretty well.’ Montgomerie’s 70 in round three beat playing partner Woods by a stroke.

Brad Faxon, playing in his 63 rd major, and Sergio Garcia are on 8 under par, while a shot further back are Michael Campbell and Vijay Singh. Campbell is seeking to become only the seventh player to win The Open after the US Open. The last player to do so was Tiger Woods.

This is the tenth time Woods has gone into a final round of a major with at least a share of the lead and his record gives little encouragement to his pursuers in Round Four: he has gone on to win all nine previous tournaments.