Australian Open 2011: Greg Chalmers Wins By A Stroke; Tiger Woods Third

When looking back on the 2011 Australian Open, Tiger Woods will likely lament a third-round hiccup. Three rounds in the 60s could’ve been enough for Woods to win the tournament, but it was a third-round 75 that dashed his hopes of getting back to his winning ways. The hole was too great for Woods to dig out of, even with a strong showing in the final round.

Woods finished the tournament at 11-under after carding a final-round 67. He made a late charge and was climbing the leaderboard on Sunday, but ran out of real estate as he tried to make up a six-shot deficit. Instead, Woods had to settle for a third-place finish, and perhaps a moral victory that comes along with a solid week of golf that had him in contention again.

Tiger Woods is stalking leader Greg Chalmers at the 2011 Australian Open and trails by just two shots as the final round winds to a close. Woods is in prime-position, two shots back through 15 holes of play. After trailing by six shots heading into the final round, he’s been climbing steadily throughout the day, and has a chance to win a tournament for the first time in what seems like forever.

Woods had a superb chance at eagle on No. 15 that would’ve tied him for the lead had he converted. Instead, he settled for a birdie, cutting Chalmers’ lead to one. As it stands now, Woods is at 10-under for the tournament, in a three-way tie for second. Chalmers carded another birdie to push his lead back to two a short time later.

Tiger Woods is just one shot back at the 2011 Australian Open as the tournament nears its conclusion. Woods is in the midst of a late charge as he nears the end of his final round. It’s been an up-and-down weekend for Woods, who fell back after leading through two rounds and found himself in a six-shot hole entering his final day of play.

Through 14 holes, Woods is at 10-under for the tournament and 4-under for the day. He trails Greg Chalmers, who is at 11-under for the tournament, by a stroke. Chalmers is through 11 holes, playing behind Woods in the final round.

Tiger Woods appears to be rebounding after a rough third round at the 2011 Australian Open left him six shots back of the lead. In his final round, Woods is 2-under par through five holes and currently sits four shots off the pace. John Senden, the leader after three rounds, and Greg Chalmers are tied atop the leaderboard at 12-under.

Chalmers is making a final round push, carding birdies on his first two holes to move into a tie for the lead. Senden is through just one hole and is at even-par for the day. The two are followed by Nick O’Hern and Jason Day, who are each at 10-under for the tournament. Day is 1-over on the day while O’Hern is 1-under.

Tigers Woods entered the third round of the 2011 Australian Open at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney feeling confident with a one-stroke lead but quickly fell behind after three straight bogeys. He’s now six back entering the final day, tied for eighth place with Bubba Watson.

Aussie John Senden is setting the pace atop the leaderboard, one stroke ahead of countryman John Senden. Nick Watney (T-4th) and Kyle Stanley (T-10th) are the only other Americans in the top 10.

There were good scores to be had in the third round of the 2011 Australian Open, but Tiger Woods couldn’t find any of them. Woods, the leader after two rounds, carded a 3-over 75 in the third round, falling well behind the leader. He began with two-straight bogeys and never recovered, slogging through a difficult round and finishing the day at 6-under for the tournament.

John Senden, however, did find a low round, firing a 9-under 63 to soar up the leaderboard and into first place heading into the final round. Senden holds a one-shot advantage and sits at 12-under for the tournament. He’ll be joined in the final pairing by Jason Day, who carded a 4-under 68 to get to 11-under for the tournament.

Tiger Woods is still sliding backwards at the 2011 Australian Open, but the story of the third round is John Senden. Woods is 3-over for the day and at 6-under for the tournament he’s now six shots back of Senden, the leader in the clubhouse. Senden fired an impressive 63 in his third round, getting to 12-under for the tournament to take the lead as it stands now.

Senden’s round came out of nowhere in a way -- he’d shot in the 70s in the first two rounds and was at 3-under coming into the third. But he caught fire, blowing past the leaders and shooting to the top of the leaderboard with some superb golf.

Is this the point where it goes off the rails for Tiger Woods. After two solid rounds left Woods atop the 2011 Australian Open leaderboard, he began his day in the final pairing, and promptly bogeyed each of the first two holes. The rough start has Woods at 7-under for the tournament.

Woods fell back into a tie for first with Jason Day and Matthew Jones. The trio is one-shot in front of a large contingent at 6-under for the tournament with the third round still in progress. Woods began the day one-shot clear of the field, playing alongside Peter O’Malley.

Tiger Woods is back on top, leading the Australian Open after two rounds at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney.

Yes, it’s still early, but considering it’s been nearly a year since he’s led a tournament -- the last time was after three rounds at the Chevron World Classic last December -- it’s hard not to do a double take at the familiar name atop the leaderboard.

Halfway across the world, Tiger Woods is quietly putting together a solid tournament for the first time in what seems like forever. Woods carded back-to-back rounds in the 60s to open the 2011 Australian Open and will enter the third round atop the leaderboard at 9-under. Woods shot a 67 in his second round, following up a first-round 68 to take a one-shot lead.

Woods is trailed by Peter O’Malley, who put together a solid round to get to 8-under for the tournament. O’Malley shot a 6-under 66 in his second round at the Australian Open and finds himself in prime-position headed into the final two rounds. Jason Day is two shots off the pace at 7-under for the tournament.

Tiger Woods is on form at the 2011 Australian Open, at least for the moment. After carding a 4-under 68 in his first round, Woods is 5-under through 11 holes in his second round, putting him atop the leaderboard as it stands now. It’s still early and much of the field has yet to tee-off, but thus far Woods is putting together another solid round.

Jarrod Lyle is currently at 7-under, two shots back of Woods and in second-place. But Lyle has yet to tee-off for his second round, sitting on a 7-under 65 from the opening round. Nick Watney is also at 7-under and, like Woods, is through 11 holes.

The 2011 Australian Open is not the biggest golf tournament in the world, but all of the big names are playing this week at The Lakes Golf Course in Sydney, Australia. The opening round featured blustery weather, a John Daly outburst and Australian native Jarrod Lyle atop the leaderboard with Dustin Watson, Nick Watney and Tiger Woods not far behind.

Lyle, a seven-year pro from Queensland, finished Thursday’s opening round by shooting a seven-under 65 that included five birdies and an eagle on the 14th hole. Americans Dustin Johnson and Nick Watney are tied for second at six-under while Tiger Woods finished just a few strokes out of the lead after shooting a four-under that didn’t include a single bogey.

Tiger Woods hasn’t exactly been relevant on the golf course ever since his personal issues took center stage under the spotlight, but that is something he’s hoping to change this week at the 2011 Australian Open. A list of tee times and the tournament’s schedule is posted on the tournament’s website, but Woods is once again the story to keep an eye on in the early rounds.

The last tournament Woods won was in Australia at the 2009 Australian Masters in Melbourne, but he isn’t quite as familiar with The Lakes course in Sydney. That will be just one of the hurdles he has to overcome this week, a fact he’s well aware of according to his comments on the PGA Tour’s website.