Noren retains golf lead as McDowell slumps

Defending champion Graeme McDowell has suffered a third round collapse at the Wales Open at Celtic Manor, crashing to an 81 to equal the worst round of his European Tour golf career.

On the course where he emerged as Europe’s Ryder Cup hero last October, the world number five slumped from one off the lead to a yawning 11 strokes adrift with a three round total of 216.

In stark contrast, Swede Alex Noren - the leader at the halfway mark - added a 71 to his rounds of 67 and 67 to give him an eight-under par total of 205, one shot clear of compatriot Peter Hanson and Dane Anders Hansen on Saturday.

For McDowell, languishing in joint 33rd, this was an untimely slip-up less than a fortnight before he teed off for the defence of his US Open title.

It could have been even worse as he thought he might get a two-shot penalty for tapping down the ground as a chip came back to him on the 12th. He escaped that because it was done in anger rather than with the intention of improving his lie.

“Obviously I’m very disappointed,” the Northern Irishman said. “I got off to a start where everything that could go wrong did go wrong.

“I just couldn’t get anything going. It was the most crazy seven holes I’ve had in a long time - my head was spinning.

“I feel I got heavily punished for some mediocre golf, not disastrously bad golf.

“After the 11th (a bogey six on a reachable par-five), I completely lost my patience and at 12 (a quadruple bogey eight), I just lost my head. That was me gone.



“I felt like I was in control of my game but I very swiftly got out of control.

“I’ve made more double bogeys and triple bogeys this season than ever and I need to address that and understand why that is. It kind of broke my heart a little bit.

“Tomorrow (Sunday) I’ll try to shoot 66-67, then lick my wounds and get ready for Congressional. But there are some mental areas that I’ve got to address.”

McDowell’s previous worst rounds on the European circuit were 81s at Valderrama in 2002 - his rookie season - and at Pinehurst in the 2005 US Open.

He was by no means the only one to suffer in windy conditions - Darren Clarke shot 80, Thomas Levet and Stuart Manley 81, Paul Broadhurst and Jason Knutzon 84.

Noren looked as if he might tumble off the leaderboard as well when he three-putted the fourth and sixth and then took six at the long ninth after a wild drive led to a penalty drop.

But the 28-year-old, winner of the European Masters in Switzerland two years ago, came back with three birdies in four holes from the 11th.

That enabled him to grab the lead back from Hansen, who from two over after three holes went crazy with six birdies and then a near-albatross at the downwind 575-metre last.

Hanson, who made his Ryder Cup debut at the course last year, started with two bogeys, but played the last 16 in five-under to boost his chances of a fifth Tour win.

Frenchman Gregory Havret pulled out of the event following the death of his father.