• Wales Open, Round Three

Gallacher sets record but Siem retains Celtic Manor lead

Stephen Gallacher produced the round of the day at Celtic Manor © Getty Images

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• News: Siem and Dodt lead the way as Donald comes good
  

Scotland's Stephen Gallacher broke the course record to fire himself into contention at the Wales Open, but Marcel Siem remains a clear favourite after he finished day three with a three-shot lead.

Gallacher emerged from nowhere on Saturday, hitting a flawless round of 63 to go eight-under-par for the day, taking his overall score to seven-under. Having already carded six birdies, the world No. 176 eagled the 18th to propel himself to tied-fourth position.

At that point Siem was just beginning to get into the meat of his round, having teed off last as the joint leader of the competition at the halfway stage. However, whereas fellow leader Andrew Dodt slumped to a four-over 75 to fall back to two-under, Siem pushed on with a five-under 66 to assume a dominant lead.

Like Gallacher, Siem's round did not feature a single bogey as he birdied the second, fifth, 11th, 14th and 15th, before parring the final three holes. A second European Tour triumph to back up his 2004 victory at the Dunhill Championship now seems inevitable.

The German's closest challengers are Spaniard Gonzalo Fdez-Castano and Dane Thomas Bjorn, the latter of whom is the only other player - alongside Siem - to stay sub-70 for all three rounds. However, Bjorn will come away disappointed from his third round effort after only posting a three-under 68.

A bunch of Britons are tied for fourth on seven-under, with Graeme McDowell and Simon Dyson joining Gallacher. McDowell's round was every bit as eye-catching as Gallacher's, with just a single bogey spoiling eight birdies.

One stroke further back are England's Richard McEvoy and Denmark's Soren Hansen on six-under, while any hope of a Luke Donald fightback whimpered out. Having followed up an opening day 75 with a second round 65, Donald could only manage a two-under 69 on day three to finish on four-under.

Chris Wood, who suffered a spectacular collapse on Friday, steadied the ship with a one-under 70, while Darren Clarke's two-over 73 took him back to level par. European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie also suffered a miserable day, returning to the clubhouse in 76 to fall back to three-over.

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