Lee Westwood and Michael Campbell were tied for the lead and three clear of the field after an action-packed completion of the Quinn Insurance British Masters third round at The Belfry on Sunday morning.
Defending champion Westwood had been down in 14th spot after starting his round with three bogeys on Saturday, but before play was called off he came back with an eagle and a birdie and on his return for an 8am start he played his remaining eight holes in four under.
A five-wood to four feet gave him a second eagle of the round at the 538-yard third, then came birdies on the fifth and sixth.
“It would be nice to get off to a quick start and three over after three is not that. Sometimes it is about hanging around and being patient. My expectations were low after last week, pretty tired.
“Last week was a draining week but I still wanted to do well this week and I am out there trying to enjoy myself. It is a course I enjoy playing. It is a tournament I enjoying playing in.”
Former US Open champion Campbell, however, followed his closing birdie last night with three more in a row for a sparkling 65.
“I just had a gut instinct that it was putt (last night) that I was going to hole,” said Campbell. “I holed it and the momentum was there for this morning.
“The sixth tee shot is probably the toughest tee shot on this course, but I was playing well and confident this morning and I had a bit of a lucky chip-in for birdie on the sixth and then I hit seven iron to six feet on the next hole and then a six iron to about six feet on the next hole.
“It’s nice to finish the third round that way and it’s going to be a very good contest this afternoon. Lee’s coming back now which is great and makes it more fun for everyone involved in the tournament.”
With Westwood round in 68 they were on ten under par, while India's Jeev Milkha Singh and Spain's Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano were joint third on seven under. The fourth and final round will see the leaders tee off at 12.55.
