A sudden stall after a blistering start in Saturday's third round saw Briton Ross Fisher's Irish Open lead trimmed to just a stroke after compatriot Chris Wood fired a 66. Fisher had shot a scintillating 61 in the second round and threatened to come up with something similar when he ran in four birdies in the first seven holes. However, a double-bogey on the eighth when he hit into water proved the start of a stumbling run which left him 10 strokes worse than his previous day's effort. His level-par 71 in windy conditions put him just clear of charging fellow-Englishman Wood and Italian playing-partner Francesco Molinari (69). Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (68) could have been on level terms with Fisher but dropped two shots on the last by hitting out of bounds and slipped to fourth place. The Spaniard's playing-partner Padraig Harrington (69) had better luck on 18. Harrington found water but then holed a 40ft putt to save par and share fifth place, three strokes off the lead, with Australian Richard Green (69). Fisher's hopes of a Ryder Cup debut could hinge on the 500,000 points for the winner on Sunday. He knows he has a tough task to hold on to his position which would take him into Europe's nine automatic qualifying spots. Molinari would virtually seal his Ryder Cup debut with victory and he is keen to follow up on brother Edoardo's recent Scottish Open success. “I fought hard today and I just hope my time comes sooner rather than later,” he said. Wood, 22, surged into contention playing alongside the tournament favorite Rory McIlroy and outshot his 21-year-old peer by 10 strokes. Wood's charge was fashioned around a blistering run of five birdies from the fifth, but the young Englishman had to keep his concentration with a large crowd urging on his playing-partner. In contrast, McIlroy closed with a second double-bogey for a 76 and left the course disenchanted with his form, admitting he could not wait to get over the Atlantic. Tseng still on song Taiwan's Yani Tseng, the leader from round one, sang to calm her nerves and fired a third successive 68 to retain her four-shot advantage in the women's British Open at Royal Birkdale Saturday. The 21-year-old has had only one bogey in 54 holes and the third round was a masterpiece. She was in total control and made birdies at the 13th and 15th before ending in style by hitting an eight iron second to 20 feet at the 472-yard 18th and holing out for an eagle three. Tseng finished the day on a 12-under-par total of 204 with Katherine Hull as her nearest challenger. The Australian birdied the final five holes for a 66 to close on 208. South Korea's Kim In-kyung eagled the last for a 68 to finish on 210, six shots behind Tseng. “I stayed patient and trusted myself,” said Tseng, twice a major winner. Hull had a flawless round, holing her longest putt of 20 feet at the 16th. She has yet to feature in the majors, but said: “My ball-striking has just got better and better over the last couple of years and that's what you need at a British Open.” World No.1 Shin Jiyai, the 2008 champion, had half a dozen birdies but ruined her day with a quadruple bogey eight at the 11th where she topped a shot and hit into a gorse bush. Brittany Lincicome was the leading American after finishing with back-to-back birdies in 71 for 211, while compatriot Morgan Pressel made the most significant move by covering the final six holes in six under par for a best-of-tournament 65. The 22-year-old, who finished joint second in last week's Evian Masters in France, started with two bogeys but then reeled off eight birdies and an eagle from 45-feet at the long 17th to jump into the top 10 on 213, nine behind Tseng.
