GRAND BLANC TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Tiger Woods drove on adjacent fairways twice on the back nine, hit a cup of beer in a spectator’s hand, got rattled by a bug and was relegated to shaping some shots around trees and under branches.
He still managed to shoot a 7-under-par 65 on Saturday in the third round of the Buick Open, giving him a 17-under 199 total and a one-stroke lead when Michael Letzig (68) double bogeyed the last hole.
“The whole idea of the game is put the ball in the hole, and I did that,” Woods said. “But as far as controlling my ball, I didn’t do that.”
Woods opened his first tournament since missing the cut at the British Open with a 71 after what he said was probably his worst putting day. When he was eight shots behind first-round leader Steve Lowery, Woods said he couldn’t make up ground in one day at Warwick Hills.
It took him two.
Woods roared back into contention with a 9-under 63 in the second round and took the lead with his 65 on Saturday.
“Eight back, at a U.S. Open, you can make that up in one round,” he said. “You can’t make it up around here.”
He moved into a tie for the lead with Letzig at 17-under with a 33-foot birdie putt at No. 17. Woods pumped his fist, shouted “Yeah!” and the traditionally rowdy gallery roared so loud he couldn’t communicate with caddie Steve Williams.
“It was pretty exciting,” said Woods, making his ninth Buick Open appearance.
Woods has a 35-1 record on the PGA Tour when he has the outright lead after 54 holes. The lone loss in this situation came when he was 20 in his third tournament as a pro, to Ed Fiori in the 1996 Quad City Classic.
Matthew takes three-stroke lead
LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England — Catriona Matthew opened a three-shot lead in the Women’s British Open, shooting a 1-under 71 in the third round.
Playing 10 weeks after giving birth to her second child, the 39-year-old Scot had a 4-under 212 total at Royal Lytham and St. Annes.
Christina Kim (71) was second at 1-under.
Funk in front
CARMEL, Ind. — Fred Funk shot a 4- under 68 to take a one-stroke lead over Greg Norman and Joey Sindelar into the final round of the U.S. Senior Open. Funk had a 13-under 203 total on the Crooked Stick course.
Norman also had a 68 and Sindelar shot a 70. Tennessee amateur Tim Jackson, the overnight leader, was three shots back at 10-under after a 73. Mark O’Meara (68) was at 9-under.
Russ Cochran set the course record with an 8-under 64. He was tied for sixth place at 8- under.
The Associated Press
