Garcia holds nerve as others falter

Sergio Garcia, the star who craves a major golf title so much, could achieve the next best thing tomorrow.

While others – overnight leader Jim Furyk and England’s Greg Owen among them - came a cropper at the £5m Players Championship in windy Florida, Garcia kept alive his hopes with a superb two-under-par 70.

Going into the final round of golf’s richest event – dubbed the unofficial fifth major – Garcia is in a tie for second with world number two Vijay Singh, one behind 2002 runner-up Stephen Ames.

No European has won the event since Sandy Lyle back in 1987.

Owen was joint second himself after a two-birdie start, but finished the day joint 32nd following a 77 that included a quadruple bogey eight and a bogey, double bogey finish that had to bring back the awful memories of the Bay Hill Invitational for him.

The British golfer, who lost by one last Sunday after three-putting from three feet on the 17th and then bogeying the last, this time three-putted from six feet for a closing double bogey six.

That dealt a big blow to his hopes of the 13th place finish he probably needs tomorrow to qualify for a Masters debut in two weeks’ time.

“I don’t want to talk about it at the moment. Sorry,” he said as, to his credit, he signed autographs.

Garcia commented: “I don’t want to get ahead of myself. The course played extremely hard and it’s going to get tougher.

“I felt like I played very well under the pressure. And I felt like my putting was fairly good – if you take away the 13th. I don’t know what happened there.”

He three-putted, is what happened. He was the last player to have a bogey all day, but after following it with another he two-putted the long 16th for birdie and parred the dangerous last two holes to match the 70 of both Ames and Singh.

Trinidad-born Ames, now a Canadian citizen as well, is also looking for his biggest victory, having been pipped four years ago by shock New Zealand winner Craig Perks, who chipped in at the 16th and 18th.

Singh has three majors to his name, of course, but badly wants to add the tournament played annually on his home course – and with Tiger Woods and Ernie Els tied for 23rd on two under the Fijian starts the last 18 holes as favourite.

Swede Henrik Stenson jumped into a share of the lead when he holed-in-one at the 13th – Justin Leonard and Jesper Parnevik made aces there in the second round – but bogeyed the last two to slip to joint fourth with former Masters champion Mike Weir.

American Arron Oberholser was another who led only to fall away. He finished triple bogey, double bogey and ended the day 17th.

Furyk, one ahead at halfway, putted off the green in making a seven at the long second and after that mixed six birdies with five bogeys and another double bogey for a 75 that sent him down to joint sixth.

At least he still has a chance. Adam Scott, the 2004 winner who was tied for second when he teed off again, collapsed to an 82.

Current European number one David Howell beat that only by one and Miguel Angel Jimenez also shot 82, while American Woody Austin did worst of all with an 83.

Ian Poulter, requiring top three for the Masters, goes into the last day only 27th after a 75, his frustration boiling over at the 12th when he took six hacks with his club at a patch of rough.

He was able to move the ball only 14 yards from it and double-bogeyed the hole. His actions, caught on television, could result in a fine.

“That’s got to be one of the hardest courses I have ever played,” he said. “I don’t want to whinge and moan, but I got punished for no reason.

“Good shots got punished and bad shots got really punished.” He did not comment on the incident at the 12th.