Els takes charge

Ernie Els used all his nous and experience around the Emirates Golf Club course to assume a two-stroke lead on the final day of the Dubai Desert Classic.

The South African has won here on three occasions, including last year, and after a quiet three days, served noticed that he would not give up his trophy without a fight.

Starting the day two shots adrift of overnight leaders Tiger Woods and Anders Hansen, the world number five birdied four times while others foundered to head the leaderboard after 11 holes.

Els had been concerned that if the wind blew as it had on Saturday it might blow his chances of a fourth Dubai title off course, but he made the most of the day’s slightly calmer conditions.

Dane Hansen had edged into an early one-stroke lead with a birdie at the second, but had not birdied again by the 11th, dropping a shot at the eighth en route.

Woods birdied at three, then bogeyed three holes later to stay at 16 under, where he was level with Retief Goosen, the world number three.

The South African, playing in his first event of 2006, had, like Woods, birdied and then bogeyed on his front nine, before pulling level with the American after a second birdie at the 10th.

Miguel Angel Jimenez, of Spain, shot a birdie at the second hole, then parred all the way to the 10th to make it a four-strong pack at 16 under.

Australian Richard Green, who won in Dubai nine years ago, was at 15 under and still in the hunt, despite being another who dropped a shot at the tricky eighth.

Pre-tournament talk had been of Europe’s most in-form player, Henrik Stenson, coming up against the world’s best in Woods.

The Swede had gone out in the final group in his last two tournaments, winning the Commercialbank Qatar Master a week ago.

This time he was an earlier starter and needing birdies to close the gap to the lead bunch, he recorded three by the 13th hole to move to 14 under and on the coat-tails of the leaders.

England’s Nick Dougherty shot seven pars but came a cropper at the seventh and again at the ninth.

The 23-year-old birdied the 11th and, alongside countryman Paul Casey and Wales’ Bradley Dredge, moved to 12 under to head the British challenge.