If Phil Mickelson proved that he's far from a beaten docket at the age of 45, then 44 year old Pádraig Harrington can't be written off heading into the final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

With a re-tooled swing, a trusty putting stroke and his always impressive short game, left-hander Mickelson laid the groundwork for a possible fifth victory at Pebble Beach with an immaculate, six under 66.

He has a two shot lead on 16 under par over Japan's Hiroshi Iwata but Harrington is not a million miles away, having clawed his way onto the fringes of contention with a six-birdie, five under par 67 at Spyglass Hill. 

Scores

While Paul Dunne shot a second successive 76 and missed the one under cut by five shots on four over and Shane Lowry made it on the limit thanks to a one under 71, Harrington had a good day with the putter to move up 16 spots to tied 11th on nine under.

The three-time major winner opened with seven successive pars on the back nine at Spyglass, then birdied four of his next six holes to move up the board.

His only dropped shot of the day came at the par-three fifth, his 14th, but he reclaimed that with a birdie-four at the seventh before closing with a birdie three at the ninth.