Owen and Poulter suffer

Greg Owen, like Jean Van de Velde more famous for losing a tournament than winning one, and Ian Poulter saw their dreams of playing in this year’s Masters fade away today.

And Sergio Garcia’s chances of victory at the Players Championship in Florida nose-dived too in an error-strewn start to the final round at Sawgrass that left Trinidad-born Stephen Ames with a three-stroke lead.

After a third round 77 Owen, left to rue his late collapse at Bay Hill last week even more, was down in 32nd place and needed to climb to 13th to grab a place at Augusta.

But it never looked like happening from the moment he putted off the lightning-fast opening green and bogeyed.

He ended with a 73 for a one over total of 289 and then waited to learn his fate.

“The Masters was on my mind all day, but the greens were the quickest I’ve ever played on – close to being unplayable,” he said.

“The only places it seemed they had not watered them were where the holes were.

“There are still demons in there I need to get rid of and missing short putts does not help.”

It was his finish to his third round that totally deflated him and, at the end of a week of answering questions about Bay Hill, left him wanting to be alone with his thoughts for a while.

A par on the 18th would have taken him into the final day 23rd, but three-putting from six feet had to bring back all the memories of the previous weekend when he three-putted from three feet on the 17th and bogeyed the last to lose by one.

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

Winning the Bay Hill Invitational would have put him well inside the world’s top 50. But second place meant 53rd – and it is only the top 50 after this week’s event that earn Augusta exemptions.

Poulter required a third place this week, but was 27th with a round to go and at two over that had become 30th with three holes remaining.

The moment it all went horribly wrong for him was the 12th in his third round 75. Poulter could move his ball less than 14 yards from the rough and took hefty whacks at a patch of land he never wants to see again.

His actions, captured on television, could result in a fine, but while he chose not to comment about the incident afterwards he said: “That’s got to be one of the hardest courses I’ve ever played.

“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.”

As for Garcia, he resumed in joint second place only one behind Ames, but after just five holes was seven adrift.

The 26-year-old Spaniard missed from under three feet for a three-putt bogey six on the second, failed to get up and down from sand at the next, then went from rough to water for a double bogey six on the fourth and let another shot go at the fifth.

Ames, runner-up four years ago to Craig Perks, stretched his lead when Vijay Singh putted off the green like Owen at the first.

Singh could then only par the second while Ames made a two-putted birdie and with the Fijian bogeying the fourth and fifth it was South African stars Ernie Els and Retief Goosen who moved into joint second at seven under, while leading European was Jose Maria Olazabal in joint fourth spot.

David Howell, the current European tour number one, had been another to come off the windswept Sawgrass on Saturday looking completely frazzled.

Howell had not scored worse than his 81 since 1998, but his comment “better now than in two weeks” said it all. He does have the Masters to look forward to.

The Swindon golfer believed he played played seven of the first 10 holes “beautifully“, yet was six over par and by the time a chip at the 18th failed to make it up a ridge and rolled 45 feet from the flag he had just about had enough.

Normally mild-mannered, Howell went to lash out at his golf bag, but just managed to stop himself.

Three birdies in the first four holes indicated that the 81 had not any lasting damage to Howell’s confidence and he finished with a 70 for five over.

“Yesterday was just one of those days, but I played nicely again today and my game’s in the best shape going into a major ever – so I’ll probably go and miss the cut,” he said.

First, though, he has this week’s BellSouth Classic in Atlanta.

Tiger Woods, in his last competitive round before a defence of the Masters which inevitably has a question mark over it because of the health of his father, was down on two over and 31st with four to play.