Westwood was three shots behind McIlroy and Bjorn at the start of the third round but the quickly closed the gap with three birdies in his first four holes. The third-ranked Englishman birdied the 13th for a share of the lead with Bjorn and then went ahead by one when the Dane bogeyed the 15th.
“I played well. I got off to a good start. I was 3-under par after four (holes),” Westwood said. “The only time I dropped two shots was when I hit two poor drives on 6 into the left rough, got a heavy lie and 8 hit it into the sand on right. Other than that very solid and gave myself lots of birdie chances.”
With 21 European Tour titles, Westwood has much more experience than the next three players. Cabrera-Bello (70), Stephen Gallacher (68) and Marcel Siem (68) have a combined three titles.
“Yeah, I know how to play with the lead. What did I win, four times last year?” Westwood said with a wry smile. “When I get a chance, I’m pretty good at finishing off. I’ve won (38) times (worldwide). You know, that’s not somebody that’s not good with a lead. It’s a habit. You get used to it, you know. You get used to knowing what to do; when to press, when not to press, when to be patient.”
Coming into Saturday, it appeared Westwood’s biggest challengers this weekend would be US Open champion McIlroy and Bjorn, who beat Tiger Woods in 2001 to take the Dubai title.
But McIlroy dropped back early, after his tee shot on No. 7 that went in the water led to his first bogey. It was a sign of the kind of struggles he would have all day, as missed putts and errant drives led to three more bogeys on the back nine.
The 22-year-old Irishman did well to remain in the hunt, making three birdies on the back nine including on the 18th for a 72. Only two shots back, McIlroy said he had similar experience in Hong Kong where he shot a 65 to win the tournament, so he is confident he could still claim his first victory in Dubai since 2009.
McIlroy is tied for fifth with 2010 PGA champion Martin Kaymer (70), Scott Jamieson (70) Joel Sjoholm (66). Bjorn (73) was a further shot back in a three-way tie for ninth with George Coetzee of South Africa and 2003 British Open Champion Ben Curtis.
Mamat holds lead, keeps local charge at bay
In Manila, Singaporean veteran Mardan Mamat held onto a slender one-shot lead over a fast-charging Filipino teenager Miguel Tabuena after the third round of the $300,000 ICTSI Philippine Open on Saturday.
Mamat, chasing his third Asian Tour victory, holed several huge par saves en route to a battling 2-under 70 at a wind-swept course to lead on seven-under-par 209 in Asia’s oldest national Open.
His overnight three-shot lead was reduced by local favorite Tabuena’s fine course record-equaling 67, while Korea’s Mo Joong-kyung fired a 68 to trail by two on 211 with only the top-three players breaking par after 54 holes.
The 44-year-old Mamat, winless since 2006, did not play as smoothly as in the second round, but his putter came through as he carded four birdies against two bogeys to set up an intriguing battle of the ages with the 17-year-old.
“I was struggling with my irons and hit a lot of fliers,” said Mamat after the round, “but I holed a lot of putts... Yesterday, I hit the ball good but didn’t putt it good. Today, I didn’t hit it good but putted good.
Of his contest with the Filipino youngster, Mamat said he was looking forward to it.
“He’s a good potential. He’s got a good swing and good guidance from Rick Gibson (his coach). He’s certainly an upcoming Asian player.” The tenacious Tabuena closed the gap on Mamat with a glorious start, sinking four birdies in his opening six holes.
“I just told myself to stay patient,” said Tabuena, who is bidding to become the third youngest winner on the Asian Tour, “It is really hard to make mistakes when you’re in a zone.”
