Tiger Woods one stroke behind Howell
(AP)
Updated: 2005-11-12 16:42

Tiger Woods missed two birdie putts and another to save par by inches Saturday, and finished one stroke behind David Howell after three rounds of the HSBC Champions tournament.

Woods had a 5-under 67 and was 15 under, sharing second place with Australia's Nick O'Hern going into Sunday's final round.

Howell, the joint overnight leader at 12-under, missed a simple birdie putt at the last and settled for a 68 to move to 16 under.

US golfer Tiger Woods receives a ball from his caddy during the second day of the Champions golf tournament in Shanghai, China November 11, 2005. [Reuters]

O'Hern, who was equal third with Woods at 10 under on Friday, was a model of consistency, shooting a 67 for the third consecutive round.

Thailand's Wiratchant Thaworn shot a 68 and was 12-under, one in front of U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell (69), Thomas Bjorn (69) and Nick Dougherty, who had a 73 after starting with a share of the lead.

No. 2-ranked Vijay Singh had a 70 and was a stroke further back at 10 under.

Woods had four birdies and an eagle on his first 14 holes, getting down to 15 under when he holed a 25-foot putt for a 3 at the par-5 14th.

But he bogeyed the next after driving into the rough, then hitting into a greenside bunker and missing a six-foot putt to save par.

He had an earlier bogey at the 9th, when he three-putted from within 15 feet.

British Golfer David Howell takes a shot during the second day for the Champions golf tournament in Shanghai, China November 11, 2005.[Reuters]

Woods hit his tee shot to within three feet of the cup at the 191-yard 17th, but his birdie putt rolled off the lip.

"I hit a nice iron, (but) I hit the putter way too hard trying to get it up the hill," said Woods.

He had more luck at the 18th, finishing with his fifth birdie of the round.

Howell finished with five birdies and a bogey.

After having just one bogey in the first 36 holes, Dougherty opened with a bogey Saturday and had double-bogeys at the 4th and 9th to slip back to 9 under at the turn.

He recovered with two birdies on the back nine for a share of fifth.

It was another frustrated day for Woods, who had a 3-under 69 in the second round and had a bogey on the last hole in the first round that cost him a share of the lead.

After the early round, he said the constant clicking of cameras during his swing was distracting.

The clicking intensified as the gallery swelled Saturday, starting from the first tee.

Woods loosened his grip on the driver, turned and asked the gallery to "hold the cameras."

"There are a lot of distractions out there, certainly. A lot of people had mobile phones, taking pictures ... a lot of distractions to deal with," Woods said. "My playing partners and I have to play through that some times. You've got to block it out as much as you can."

Woods had to intervene for Kenneth Ferrie at the 4th when people started moving while the Englishman was trying to putt, saying: "Mam, hold still _ please!"

More than 1,000 people tracked Woods around the course, that number doubling at some holes.

Woods finally had enough on the 12th tee, checking his swing and glaring at a photographer.

While Woods was familiar with the big crowds, it was a distraction for his playing partners. Paul Casey had a 1-over 73, slipping back to 8 under. Ferrie had 74 and slipped back to 7 under.

Eight-time European Order of Merit winner Colin Montgomerie shot a 68, improving by three strokes with each round to be back down to 3 under.

Due to persistent rain, the tournament allowed lift and place rules in the first two rounds, permitting players to pick up and clean their balls without penalty from closely mown areas through the green.

It was mainly fine Saturday, although rain was forecast for Sunday.

The European Tour is opening its 2006 season with this US$5 million (euro4.3 million) tournament, which is sanctioned by four tours and is the richest ever in Asia.