Sat Apr 26 19:03:26 2008

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Two late birdies give Scott three-shot lead

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Irving, TX (Sports Network) - Adam Scott birdied two of his last three holes on Saturday for a three-under 67 and the third-round lead of the Byron Nelson Championship.

Scott, the overnight leader by one, finished 54 holes at eight-under 202 and is three clear at the TPC Four Seasons Resort Las Colinas.

Kevin Sutherland held the lead on Saturday, but two late bogeys knocked him down the leaderboard. He finished with a three-under 67 and is tied for second place with Bart Bryant (67), Charley Hoffman (68) and Ryan Moore (68). The group finished at five-under 205.

Sergio Garcia, who is winless worldwide since 2005, posted a five-under 65 and is part of a group tied for sixth at four-under 206.

"The important thing for me is keep getting some good confidence on my side and just make sure that I keep going forward," said Garcia, who lost a playoff last year at the British Open. "At least now I have a chance of -- a better chance of winning tomorrow. It's just a matter of going out there and probably having to play close to today and see what happens."

Garcia is tied with Dudley Hart (66) and Jesper Parnevik (68).

They will have a tall order in catching the world No. 10.

Scott actually struggled a bit to start the round. At the par-three second, Scott knocked it to 50 feet and left himself with five feet for par. He missed the putt, but got back to five-under par with a nine-foot birdie putt at the fourth.

Sutherland matched Scott in first with an eight-foot eagle putt at the seventh. That tie did not last long. Scott drained a 30-foot birdie putt at the par-five fifth to reclaim his lead.

Scott fell back into a tie for first when he made a mess of the eighth. His par chip from 10 feet stayed above ground, dropping Scott into a tie for the lead with Sutherland.

Sutherland moved into sole possession of the lead with a birdie at 11. Scott tied him with a 13-footer for birdie at No. 10. Sutherland got to seven-under with an 11-foot birdie putt at the 13th, but trouble loomed.

At the par-three 17th, Sutherland hit his tee ball to 50 feet. He left himself with close to six feet for par and he was unable to convert. Sutherland's drive at the closing hole landed in the right trees and he couldn't even get his second back into the fairway. He walked off with another bogey to fall behind at five-under.

"I hit a lot of good shots until the last few holes," admitted Sutherland.

Scott played well on the later holes.

Armed with a one-shot lead, Scott laid up at 16, then wedged his third to six feet. He converted that birdie putt and closed his round with a tap-in birdie to take a three-shot lead.

"It was a bit of a quick turnaround," acknowledged Scott, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour. "It was the strong finish I needed. It's a patience game out there."

Scott owns at least a piece of the 54-hole lead for the seventh time on tour. He's gone on to victory four times, but only once since 2004 and that came at the 2006 Tour Championship.

"I used to be really good, but lately, not so good," joked Scott. "I'm going to turn it around tomorrow."

Brian Gay shot a two-under 69 and is alone in ninth place at minus-three.

Luke Donald (68), Ken Duke (68), Kenny Perry (69) and Mathew Goggin (72) are tied for 10th place at two-under 208.