Westwood owns share of lead
SHENZHEN, CHINA — Lee Westwood made 11 birdies in a round of 61 on Saturday to grab a share of the lead with Louis Oosthuizen after the third round of the HSBC Champions.
Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, came into the weekend with a five-stroke lead over the field, but struggled with his putting and had a 70.
The South African had a chance to retake the lead with a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole, but missed by inches — the last of many near misses throughout the day.
Westwood and Oosthuizen were at 18-under 198. Phil Mickelson (66) made seven birdies and was three shots back.
Ernie Els briefly surged into a share of the lead on the back nine before dumping his ball into a reservoir on the tricky 15th hole and taking a double bogey. He finished with a 69 and was tied for fourth with Bill Haas (66) and Ian Poulter (65) at 202.
Westwood, a former world No. 1, has long been considered one of the most consistent golfers, yet he’s never broken through to win a major, finishing runner-up twice — at the Masters and British Open in 2010.
He’s also played in more World Golf Championship events than any other golfer (41), but his best result is second place on three occasions, most recently at the HSBC Champions in 2010 when he lost to Francesco Molinari by one stroke.
“It does surprise me that I’ve played more than anyone else. I didn’t realize I was that old,” the 39-year-old Englishman said. “I know I’ve played a lot. I’ve never won one.”
Starting the day back in 12th place, Westwood began his charge up the leaderboard with three consecutive birdies on the first three holes.
He then birdied the fifth and seventh holes and sunk a 10-foot putt for another birdie on the 573-yard par-5 ninth hole to make the turn at 13 under, four strokes back. The Englishman kept up the pressure on the back nine, closing his round with four more birdies to catch Oosthuizen and Els.
“I just wanted to come out fast and try to get some momentum,” Westwood said.