Garcia facing uphill battle

Sergio Garcia was today battling to keep alive his chances of retaining his Lancome Trophy title at St Nom La Breteche.

Garcia began the third round seven shots off the lead held by Holland’s Maarten Lafeber, who carded consecutive rounds of 65 for a 12-under halfway total.

The 22-year-old Spaniard needed to get off to a fast start to close the gap on the leaders and remain in the hunt for the €237,000 first prize and second European Tour victory of the season.

However Garcia, nicknamed El Nino, ironically struggled to cope with the blustery wind that had sprung up for the first time this week, and after opening with two pars, dropped shots at the third and fourth.

At just three under par, the Ryder Cup star found himself 10 shots behind Lafeber, the Dutchman starting in style with a birdie at the first.

Anything is possible with Garcia however, as amply demonstrated last year when he was four behind with four to play in the final round but carded three birdies in a row to beat European number one Retief Goosen by a shot.

And after a par on the fifth he needed just three strokes to negotiate the par-five sixth for an eagle, and followed that up with a birdie on the next par five, the eighth.

Unfortunately for Garcia, Lafeber was showing no signs of coming back to the field and also birdied the sixth to move to 14 under and maintain his two-shot overnight cushion over Alex Cejka – and eight clear of Garcia.

There were plenty of eagles around despite the blustery wind and one from Lancashire’s Paul Eales on the sixth took him to nine under par and a share of third place with Gordon Brand Jnr, who had his eagle on the eighth after birdies at the previous two holes.

Nick Faldo had gone to the turn in 32 to move to seven under for the tournament while Ian Woosnam had gone one better on the back nine after starting at the 10th.

Woosnam, who confirmed this week his intention to succeed Sam Torrance as European Ryder Cup captain for the contest at Oakland Hills in 2004, had in fact started with an eagle by holing his approach to the short par four 10th, but after three more birdies dropped a shot at the second to be six under.