Woods Puts Himself in Driver’s Seat

Tiger Woods was a happy man after Saturday’s third round of the Western Open.

Woods birdied three holes on the back nine and made an impressive, 20-foot, uphill putt to save par on the 18th Saturday for a four-under 68 and a four-stroke lead in the Western Open at Lemont, Ill.

When Woods has a lead, he’s practically unstoppable. Of the seven tournaments he’s led going into the final round, he’s lost only one.

And that one loss came in the Quad City Classic, just a few weeks after he turned professional.

“Tomorrow I’ll just play the game the way I have been,” said Woods, who is at 14-under 202 after three rounds. “Just keep hitting a lot of fairways and if I’m there, if I have a good number and a good situation, then I’ll attack.”

Stuart Appleby, who started the day sharing the lead with Woods, bogeyed four holes and finished with an even-par 72 to put him four strokes back at 206. Mike Weir, who shot a five-under 67, and first-round leader Mike Brisky also were at 206.

Woods’ lead was almost cut in half on the par-four 18th when his third shot, a chip shot out of an uphill bunker, rolled 20 feet past the pin while Appleby had what looked like an easy birdie putt.

But Woods made his putt to the delight of the crowd. Appleby still had a chance to cut a stroke off Woods’ lead, but he just missed his putt and tapped in for par.

*

Se Ri Pak shot a 68 to join Shani Waugh and Jenny Lidback atop a crowded leaderboard through three rounds of the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic at Sylvania, Ohio.

Five players were a shot back, including Karrie Webb, seeking her sixth LPGA victory of the year, and Mardi Lunn, who led after each of the first two rounds.

Fifteen players were within three shots of the lead.

Seeking her third straight victory in Ohio, Pak’s three-under 68 followed rounds of 68 and 69 and left her at eight-under 205.

Waugh and Lidback each made birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 to join Pak at the top.

Lunn, winless in 129 LPGA starts, had a three-shot lead after two rounds. But that melted with a third-round 74, the highest score of anyone in the top 16.

*

Ireland’s Christy O’Connor moved closer to his first victory on American soil, shooting a six-under 66 for a three-shot lead over Bruce Fleisher after two rounds of the State Farm Senior Classic at Columbia, Md.

Playing in temperatures that reached the mid-90s, O’Connor wielded a putter that was just as sizzling. He birdied the first three holes and never wilted during a bogey-free round.

O’Connor has 14 birdies and one bogey for a 13-under 131 total after two trips over the 6,983-yard course at Hobbit’s Glen Golf Club.

*

Renowned course architect Robert Trent Jones was resting comfortably, four days after being hospitalized at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for an undisclosed condition.

Jones, 93, entered Holy Cross Hospital on Wednesday and his condition is not critical, a hospital spokeswoman said.

Among his best-known courses are Peachtree Golf Club in Atlanta; Spyglass Hill in Pebble Beach; Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio; Hazeltine National in Chaska, Minn.; and Valderrama in Sotogrande, Spain.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

In Front

Leaders through Saturday’s play (Complete scores, Page 14):

MOTOROLA WESTERN OPEN--Par 72

Tiger Woods: 68-66-68--202 -14

Mike Weir: 72-67-67--206 -10

Mike Brisky: 66-69-71--206 -10

Stuart Appleby: 68-66-72--206 -10

JAMIE FARR KROGER CLASSIC--Par 71

Shani Waugh: 69-68-68--205 -8

Se Ri Pak: 68-69-68--205 -8

Jenny Lidback: 67-68-70--205 -8

Sherri Steinhauer: 70-67-69--206 -7

Karrie Webb: 70-66-70--206 -7

Cindy McCurdy: 69-67-70--206 -7

Marisa Baena: 67-69-70--206 -7

Mardi Lunn: 65-67-74--206 -7

STATE FARM SENIOR CLASSIC--Par 72

Christy O’Connor: 65-66--131 -13

Bruce Fleisher: 67-67--134 -10

Hubert Green: 67-69--136 -8