José Maria Olazábal dodged the lightning and the rain showers which blighted play at Firestone Country Club to move into contention in the third round of the World Golf Championships – NEC Invitational.
The 39 year old Spaniard, whose 61 in 1990 shares the Firestone course record with Tiger Woods’s 2000 effort, carded a third round 66 for a four under par total of 206 to take the clubhouse lead as play was halted for the second time due to the severe weather sweeping across Ohio. On the course, joint leaders Kenny Perry and Tiger Woods were seven under par with three and one hole respectively left to play.
Play was originally stopped at 12.44pm local time, the cessation lasting three hours and 11 minutes before it began again at 3.55pm. But the restart only lasted for 16 minutes as the klaxon horns sounded once again at 4.11pm.
Olazábal very nearly got his third round finished the first time round, having to come off the course with only the 18th to play. But luckily for the winner of 22 titles on The European Tour International Schedule, the 16 minutes for which play resumed, were sufficient for him to complete the 18th.
“I’m happy with my score today,” he admitted, after having opened with rounds of 72-68. “Anything under par is pretty good so I’m really pleased. I made a few more putts today than I had done the first two days so that helped my score obviously.
“I can’t pinpoint the reason I seem to do well here. It’s a tough golf course where you have to drive the ball straight and it is demanding with your irons because the greens are small and well protected. But whatever I’m doing right, I’m glad it’s happening.”
Olazábal only dropped one shot – at the 13th where he drove into a bunker – but he made up for that with five birdies elsewhere in his round, including an impressive stretch around the turn where he birdied four holes out of five from the eighth.
While Olazábal held the clubhouse lead, the man who made the early day story was his European Tour colleague Lee Westwood who set the early Saturday play alight with a superb seven under par 63 to propel him up the leaderboard.
The 32 year old Englishman had threatened to play well in the first two rounds but his scores of 73-72 did him little justice. However, the third round proved to be a different proposition as seven birdie putts found the bottom of the cup to move him to two under par 208 for the tournament.
“I was right on the edge of playing well in the first two rounds but the course here is punishing and if you start missing fairways, even by a couple of yards, it is difficult to post a score,” he said.
“But I didn’t do that today, I hit a lot of good shots and hit a lot of shots close. The more I play over here the more I feel like I do get into the rhythm of things and start to get the most out of my game.”
Westwood got off to a flying start with birdies at the tenth and 11th holes, but his round truly ignited when he rattled off four birdies in a row from 15th, the highlight being a sublime seven iron to 18 inches at the 17th.
Such an impressive run saw the 16 time winner on The European Tour International Schedule to the ‘turn’ in six under par 29, a record for the back nine in the Championship at Firestone.
He could not quite repeat the fireworks on his inward half, his only departure from par coming at the 526 yard second hole when his five wood approach found the front fringe of the green from where he proceeded to two putt for birdie four.
