Padraig Harrington closed with a birdie two and shot a one under 69 at Monterey Peninsula Country Club. Darren Clarke finished with a bogey six in New Delhi after slam dunking his approach to the final hole into the water for a third round 70.

You might think that Harrington would be the happier of the two but his move to nine under par left him nine strokes behind defending champion Dustin Johnson and journeyman Paul Goydos entering the final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

Despite his finish, Clarke is just two strokes off the lead held by no fewer than seven players in the Avantha Masters in New Delhi.

They include Englishman Barry Lane, who kept alive his bid to replace Des Smyth as the oldest man to win a European Tour event after the 49-year-old recorded a one-under 71 to join the leading pack on 11 under.

Lane said: “I have been in these situations before so it will help me in that sense but it has been a long time since my last win.”

Avantha Masters, DLF Golf and Country Club, New Delhi, India (Gbr & Irl unless stated, par 72):

205 Yin-shin Chan (Tpe) 65 68 72, Rahil Gangjee (Ind) 67 69 69, Richard Bland 68 71 66, Darren Beck (Aus) 70 65 70, Tetsuji Hiratsuka (Jpn) 73 62 70, Barry Lane 67 67 71, Fredrik Andersson Hed (Swe) 68 71 66

206 David Drysdale 68 67 71, Kwanchai Tannin (Hkg) 68 68 70, Andrew Dodt (Aus) 67 68 71

207 Jeppe Huldahl (Den) 71 70 66, Marcel Siem (Ger) 64 73 70, Thaworn Wiratchant (Tha) 67 73 67, Darren Clarke 71 66 70, Wen-hong Lin (Chn) 68 70 69, Terry Pilkadaris (Aus) 68 71 68

209 Gareth Maybin 70 69 70

214 Shane Lowry 71 66 77