Strong finish helps Tiger maintain lead at Sherwood

Following up a great round in golf is never easy, even in perfect conditions. So Tiger Woods knew he would be tested Saturday in the third round of the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club, especially in the cold morning rain and blustery afternoon conditions.

A five-time winner and the tournament host, Woods battled the elements and a balky putter to post an even-par 72, good for a 54-hole score of 11-under 205, two strokes better than Zach Johnson (72). Bubba Watson (69) is third at 7-under, while Matt Kuchar is a distant fourth at 4-under.

Only three players in the elite 18-player field broke 70, topped by Rory McIlroy with a 68. For most, it was a survival day, as 10 players shot over par.

“It was a tough day,” Woods said. “The wind was all over the place. It was really tough to pull clubs. There’s some really difficult pins out there. So it made it even more imperative to miss the ball in the right spots. A lot of guys shot some high numbers.”

On Friday, Woods blazed a 62, matching the tournament record he set in 2007. He made the game look easy, hitting all 18 greens in regulation and missed only one fairway.

“It’s really hard to do,” Woods said of continuing lights-out play.

Although Tiger started strong, going par-birdie-par, he dropped a shot at the dogleg right, par-4 fourth, pushing a fairway wood off the tee into the bordering hazard and sustained a bogey.

Paired with Johnson in the final twosome, Woods steadied with three consecutive pars, then gave back another shot at the downhill par-3 eighth, where he missed the green left, hit a poor chip about eight feet from the pin and two-putted for a bogey. Tiger parred the ninth hole to make the turn in 1-over 37.

On the back side, Woods birdied the short par-4 10th for the second straight day. He gave himself a good chance for birdie at the par-5 11th, but burned the left edge of the cup from eight feet. Tiger two-putted the par-3 12th from about 20 feet behind the hole.

At the 568-yard, par-5 13th, Woods played his second shot well short of the green, then hit a nice approach from 126 yards five feet from the hole. Tiger locked his birdie attempt, failing to catch any of the cup, then missed a four-footer coming back and suffered a bogey.

“I missed my share of putts today,” Woods said. “I didn’t putt well. It’s hard to get the speed right, especially a couple times when you’re in the shadows coming into the sun or vice versa. I think everyone was a little bit off balance in the wind.”

Tiger two-putted the par-4 14th for par, then lost another shot at the diabolical 192-yard, downhill, par-3 15th over water. Six players had found the hazard before Johnson played, and he became the seventh. Woods didn’t mess around with the back-right pin and played safe to the left, leaving a long birdie putt. He left his first putt 12 feet short, then narrowly missed his par-saving effort.

Tiger hit two good shots at the 537-yard, par-5 16th and reached the green in two with an iron from 254 yards, the ball stopping about 15 feet past the pin. His eagle putt broke right, but Woods tapped in for an easy birdie.

At the uphill par-3 17th, Woods smartly played to the back of the green and two-putted for a par. Then, at the downhill 444-yard, par-4 18th, he got a nice break when his fairway wood off the tee scooted through the right rough and rolled down into the fairway. At this point, the wind was really gusting, causing Tiger to back off his shot twice. When Woods settled in, he hit an 8-iron from 171 yards to about 12 feet right of the hole.

Johnson putted first on a similar line from about 20 feet and rolled in the right-to-left putt for birdie. Not to be out-done, Woods poured in his putt right on top for a satisfying birdie.

“I’m real pleased with having the lead,” Woods said. “Not real pleased with the way I putted. I left a few out there today.”

Woods is 48-5 worldwide when he has owned the outright lead heading to the final found. He was 4-for-4 on the PGA TOUR this year.

Woods and Johnson will play together again Sunday and start the final round at 1:55 E.T. The winner receives $1 million.