r3 - cool hand luke

If Luke Donald is to win his first major title on Sunday it will be achieved the hard way - he has to go head-to-head with Tiger Woods at the US PGA championship in Chicago.

The 28-year-old Englishman needs no reminding that Woods has won all of his 11 major titles from the front on the final day. On nine of those occasions he has been the outright leader and, as is the case now, the other two when sharing top spot.

Donald, joint halfway leader with Henrik Stenson, Billy Andrade and Tim Herron, left them trailing behind by adding a 66 for 14 under par.

But Woods was only one off his lowest-ever round in a major with his course record-equalling 65 and would have matched it but for three-putting the 16th for his first bogey since the opening hole on Thursday.

The statistics are frightening for Donald as he prepares to tackle the world number one. Woods is not just going for a second successive major after his triumph in the Open at Hoylake last month, but also a third tournament win in a row.

He has shot in the sixties in 13 of his last 14 rounds - and he won this title when it was last held at the Medinah Country Club in 1999.

Donald said in March that he thought the only way for him to catch up with the 30-year-old American superstar was to "start believing I'm as good as him."

Well, after 49 holes he was not just as good, but two better than Woods - and led the race for the final major title of the season.

No European has won any major since 1999 and none has lifted this trophy since Tommy Armour way back in 1930.

But Woods, who made a 30-footer for par on the first and turned in 32, had a hat-trick of birdies from the 13th and then, after his slip on the next, made a 12-foot putt for his eighth birdie of the day.

Donald birdied four of the first six and chipped in on the ninth for an outward 31, but then came seven pars in a row and, after he had salvaged a four on the 16th with a brilliant bunker recovery, he fired in a brilliant tee shot to five feet at the next.

Woods said: "I've really hit the ball well. After the second hole I was off and running. It does not feel like a major - normally you are mostly making pars, but here you've needed a bunch of birdies."

Canadian Mike Weir lies third on 12 under after he also returned a 65. And the left-hander can tell Donald how hard the task he faces is.

On the same course seven years ago Weir shared the lead with 18 holes to play, then slumped to an 80.

Australian Geoff Ogilvy, like Woods going for his second major victory of the season, started his round with a double bogey, but then showed the qualities which won him the US Open in June with six birdies.

He is in fourth place, while Sergio Garcia, the man pipped by Woods at Medinah last time, is four behind in joint fifth place with 2003 winner Shaun Micheel after both shot 67.

On a day of spectacularly low scoring following overnight rain there was one moment early on when 10 players shared the lead.

Defending champion and Masters champion Phil Mickelson, out-scored by three by Woods in their duel over the opening two rounds, was one of them and so was Chris DiMarco, the man Woods denied at the Open last month and at the Masters last year.

But they both bogeyed the last and finished the day on eight under. Probably too far back considering who it is they are chasing.

Ian Poulter is another on eight under after a 68, but he has a duel purpose tomorrow - trying to win, of course, but also trying to re-ignite his bid to save his Ryder Cup place.

As for Stenson, virtually certain to be making his debut at the K Club, he fell off the pace by bogeying two of the first four.

As for the American Ryder Cup race, which ends after the final round, Davis Love's 73 for six under dropped him to 18th and he needs to be eighth to claim an automatic spot.

Herron requires a seventh place finish to knock out Brett Wetterich, who missed the cut, and will resume joint eighth.

Woody Austin and JB Holmes lie joint 12th, but have to be third and first respectively at Medinah.

If they all fail to achieve their goals Tom Lehman's wild cards are expected to go to Love and Stewart Cink.

Stenson finished with a 73 for seven under, while Herron had a 72 and Andrade, who had a quadruple bogey seven on the 17th, a 78.

Donald, who has had a base in Chicago since his student days, is playing in only the 16th major of his career and his only top 10 finish came when he came out of the pack at last year's Masters to third by playing the last eight holes in six under.

He will be centre stage when he tees off here for the final round.

"I've not really contended in a major before," he said. "This will be a little different pressure, but it's what I practise for. It will be fun.

"I saw a little bit of the early golf and knew I needed a fast start. Saving par on the first was key - you never want to bogey the first - and after birdies on the next two I was off and running."

There was an early indication that it was going to be a spectacular day's scoring.

At the fifth American Joey Sindelar holed a three-wood for the first albatross in any major since England's Gary Evans in the 2004 Open at Royal Troon and just the third in the event's history.

Justin Rose, playing his first major for two years, had a 70 for three under, but Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell had to be content with a level par 72 for one under and David Howell and Lee Westwood were unable to make the move they really wanted.

Both were out in "only" 36 and Howell finished with a 73 for one under, while Westwood, three under overnight, had a 71 for four under.

Normally in a major a round under par takes a player forward. Not this time, though.

Collated third-round scores (USA unless stated, par 72):

202 Tiger Woods 69 68 65, Luke Donald (Gbr) 68 68 66

204 Mike Weir (Can) 72 67 65

205 Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 69 68 68

206 Sergio Garcia (Spa) 69 70 67, Shaun Micheel 69 70 67

207 KJ Choi (Kor) 73 67 67

208 Chris DiMarco 71 70 67, Phil Mickelson 69 71 68, Ian Poulter (Gbr) 70 70 68, Tim Herron 69 67 72

209 JB Holmes 71 70 68, Adam Scott (Aus) 71 69 69, Woody Austin 71 69 69, Steve Stricker 72 67 70, David Toms 71 67 71, Henrik Stenson (Swe) 68 68 73

210 Ryan Moore 71 72 67, Harrison Frazar 69 72 69, Davis Love 68 69 73

211 Retief Goosen (Rsa) 70 73 68, Jim Furyk 70 72 69, Billy Mayfair 69 69 73, Chris Riley 66 72 73

212 Steve Flesch 72 71 69, Sean O'Hair 72 70 70, Lee Westwood (Gbr) 69 72 71, Fred Funk 69 69 74

213 Robert Karlsson (Swe) 71 73 69, Anders Hansen (Den) 72 71 70, Robert Allenby (Aus) 68 74 71, Justin Rose (Gbr) 73 70 70, Ernie Els (Rsa) 71 70 72

214 Trevor Immelman (Rsa) 73 71 70, Kenny Perry 72 71 71, JJ Henry 68 73 73, Olin Browne 75 66 73, Tim Clark (Rsa) 70 69 75, Billy Andrade 67 69 78

215 Graeme McDowell (Gbr) 75 68 72, Heath Slocum 73 70 72, Ryan Palmer 70 73 72, Corey Pavin 72 71 72, Stewart Cink 68 74 73, Richard Green (Aus) 73 69 73, David Howell (Gbr) 71 71 73, Jonathan Byrd 69 72 74, Jose Maria Olazabal (Spa) 72 68 75, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 72 67 76

216 Rich Beem 75 69 72, Nathan Green (Aus) 71 71 74

217 Ben Curtis 72 72 73, Joey Sindelar 74 70 73, Jay Haas 75 68 74, Stephen Ames (Can) 74 69 74, Lucas Glover 66 74 77

218 Jerry Kelly 70 74 74, Dean Wilson 74 70 74, Chad Campbell 71 72 75, Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 73 75, Bob Tway 72 71 75, Jason Gore 70 73 75, Steve Lowery 70 72 76

219 Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 70 74 75

220 Don Yrene 71 72 77, Charles Warren 73 70 77

221 Jeff Maggert 75 68 78

222 Hideto Tanihara (Jpn) 73 71 78, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 70 73 79, Jim Kane 71 71 80