Dougherty has the edge

A final group pairing of Nick Dougherty, Colin Montgomerie and Thomas Bjorn produced some enthralling golf at the Caltex Masters in Singapore and, after the lead changed hands several times, it was the former who came out on top at the conclusion of round three.

Dougherty, the overnight leader, shot a 68 to hold a two-stroke advantage at 13 under over the Scot and the Dane, who carded 69 and 67 respectively.

The Englishman, a protégé of Nick Faldo, has yet to win on the European Tour win and will go out with the same playing partners tomorrow chasing a maiden victory

Dougherty went to 10 under with a birdie four at the second hole but Montgomerie, one shot behind, closed the gap at the 363-yard next.

However, a bogey four at the fifth dropped him back to eight under and one behind Bjorn.

The Dane had birdied the first two holes to move up from six under and, after a bogey at the third, he reproduced back-to-back birdies to go to nine under.

However, he had a double-bogey six at the par-four sixth and Dougherty also dropped a shot on the same hole to allow Montgomerie to tie the lead with a birdie two.

But the Scot immediately dropped a shot at the next, the 616-yard par-five, and Dougherty moved two ahead again with a birdie two at the eighth after hitting his tee shot to 18 inches.

That birdie was matched by Bjorn with a putt from 15 feet to take him back to eight under and tied with Montgomerie.

The 2004 Ryder Cup winner then birdied the ninth after hitting his approach to 10 feet and although Dougherty’s second shot finished inside his playing partner’s he could not convert it and his lead was back to one.

Montgomerie somehow fashioned a birdie on the 10th, sinking a 20ft putt after finding trouble off the tee, and that was matched by Bjorn who had a relative tap-in from six feet to go nine under.

Dougherty then drove into heavy rough at the par-five 11th and had to lay-up but recovered well by pitching to three feet and holing out to go to 11 under for the first time in the tournament.

Bjorn also birdied the 11th after a good two-putt from distance.

At the 212-yard next, Dougherty pulled his tee shot – resulting in a bogey - while Montgomerie finished three feet from the flag and his birdie took the Scot into the lead at 11 under.

Bjorn then claimed the outright lead at 12 under after chipping in for an eagle three from the front of the 15th green but it was short-lived as Montgomerie birdied the same hole to draw level, the pair now two ahead of Dougherty.

On the 16th Dougherty rolled in a 25-foot putt to move within one shot of the lead but Montgomerie missed the 17th green, chipped right across the putting surface and bogeyed – as did Bjorn – while the Englishman’s eight-footer dropped for birdie.

A 15-foot birdie putt on the last then gave Dougherty a two-stroke cushion.

Sweden’s Peter Hedblom and Holland’s Maarten Lafeber were tied for fourth at 10 under.

Ryder Cup winner Lee Westwood carded a 70 to move to three under, while his team-mate at Oakland Hills David Howell produce a similar round to be two shots further back.

Off the course Scotland’s Andrew Coltart was today recovering in hospital after having his appendix removed in an emergency operation last night.