Dredge's grip slips in wet weather

Two golfers with one European Tour victory between them in over 380 events lead the star-studded field after a horribly wet third round at the Smurfit Kappa European Open in Dublin.

Welshman Bradley Dredge, five clear at one point and without a single bogey in 42 holes, suddenly lost his grip on the £2.4m event.

As conditions worsened the 33-year-old, hoping to jump to 10th on the Ryder Cup table by claiming the £400,000 first prize tomorrow, dropped five shots in the last six holes and crashed to joint seventh with a 75.

Spaniard Jose Manuel Lara and England’s Anthony Wall were the two to take full advantage.

Lara, still chasing his first title nine years after turning professional, moved to the top of the leaderboard at nine under par thanks to a superb five-under 67.

Wall, whose only success came in South Africa six years ago, led by two with three to play, but bogeyed two of them and will enter the closing 18 holes one behind.

A stroke further back are Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke, Dredge’s World Cup-winning partner Stephen Dodd and England’s Simon Khan and Jamie Spence.

American Ryder Cup captain Tom Lehman, who resorted to wearing his cap back-to-front when the rain was at its worst, still has a chance on five under, four behind, while Paul Casey is one ahead of him and could yet achieve the win which would knock David Howell off the top of the Order of Merit.

Dredge said: "I think the wet factor set in - it was pretty nasty.

“When the face of the driver gets a bit wet the ball squirts off a bit and I had some awful ones.

“I felt like I was swinging well and playing quite aggressively, but it wasn’t the back nine I wanted.” He came home in 41.

“I still have a chance, but it’s very much an outside one now.”

Wall stated: “I wouldn’t say I’m playing great at the moment, but I’m just doing whatever I can to keep it going.”

Clarke commented after a round containing seven birdies, five bogeys and a double bogey at the 16th: “I had some great shots and some terrible ones. Overall 72 is not a bad score.”