Vijay takes lead in final round of Buick Open

Grand Blanc:

In the third round of the Buick Open at the Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan, the world number two outplayed the world number one. Vijay Singh could seemingly do no wrong with his putter. He made a short birdie on the 6th hole to lower his score to 18-under. It was his fifth birdie from his first sixth holes. After his second round 61, Tiger Woods played a steady third round, without any of the fireworks of Friday. Another birdie for Singh on the 8th hole saw his score drop once again, this time to 19-under par. One of the best shots of the day was a delicate chip by Sean O'Hair that stopped tantalisingly close to the cup on the 16th hole. Zach Johnson is now Singh's closest pursuer, five strokes behind the Fijian. Johnson, too, was extremely accurate with his putter, as he made birdie on the 14th hole to lower his score to 17-under par. Tiger Woods sunk a long, curling putt at the 13th, which lowered his score to 13-under par. He is in a trio of golfers at 14-under par heading into the fourth round, eight shots behind Singh. Chris DiMarco stands alone in third place at 15-under par. The New Yorker did well with his irons all day - among his best shots, an approach on the 16th hole. Singh, meanwhile, made birdie on the finishing hole to lower his score to 22-under, and tied the Buick Open, 54-hole record of 22-under par 194. If Singh holds onto his five-shot lead he will be the first man to win the Buick Open three times, a tournament that started in 1958, and the first to retain his title since Tony Lema in 1965. And if Singh shoots 67 or better on Sunday, he will break Robert Wrenn's tournament best mark of 26 under, set in 1987. (AP)