HOUSTON (Texas), March 31: Fiji’s Vijay Singh, who is in the midst of his longest drought as a PGA Tour member, extended his lead at the $4million Houston Open on Saturday to three shots over Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland with a six-under-par 66.

Singh, who is winless in the US since his Masters victory two years ago, began the day two shots better than Clarke and built a six-stroke advantage before settling for a 54-hole total of 18-under 198, matching the tournament record set by Curtis Strange in 1980.

Singh began the third round with three pars, then birdied six of the next eight holes to build a six-shot cushion. He played the last five holes in one-over but secured his 11th 54-hole lead on the PGA Tour.

Clarke also left a few on the TPC at the Woodlands but is in contention for his second career PGA Tour title. A standout in Europe, he birdied three of the last six holes to make up ground on his playing partner.

Third round scores:

198 Vijay Singh (Fiji) 67 65 66

201 Darren Clarke (Britain) 69 65 67

203 Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain) 71 68 64

205 Shigeki Maruyama (Japan) 68 71 66, Brandt Jobe 70 66 69

206 Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) 69 71 66, Paul Stankowski 72 68 66, Adam Scott (Australia) 72 67 67, Jim Carter 65 73 68, Jay Haas 67 70 69, Greg Norman (Australia) 70 68 68, J.P. Hayes 67 68 71

207 Greg Chalmers (Australia) 69 72 66, Fred Couples 68 71 68, Justin Leonard 70 68 69

208 Briny Baird 70 71 67, Fred Funk 71 70 67, Tom Pernice Jr. 71 70 67, David Toms 69 72 67, Nick Price (Zimbabwe) 68 71 69, Chris Riley 67 70 71.—AFP/Reuters