There is a way round this course and I was doing it for 12 holes Colin Montgomerie

Montgomerie parred 12 straight holes before carding a two-over 72 for nine over after three rounds on Saturday.

Ireland's Paul McGinley (71) slipped to nine over as Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell (72) dropped to 10 over.

England's Ian Poulter and Nick Dougherty both carded 74 for 10 over with Jonathan Lomas (75) on +11.

Montgomerie, who slumped out of contention with a 75 on day two, went blemish-free until bogeying the 13th and double-bogeying the 16th before salvaging a shot at 17.

"I don't think I've ever gone that long before [without a birdie]," said Montgomerie.

"But there is a way round this course and I was doing it for 12 holes.

There's nothing worse than missing the cut and then missing a flight when the next one is not for 24 hours Paul McGinley

"I've never seen a pin like the one of the 13th. From there in it's very, very difficult.

"Anything under par here is tremendous. The pins are in very difficult spots and the greens are drying out."

McDowell, the world number 43, exchanged a bogey and a birdie in an outward 35.

After the turn he briefly touched seven over, nine off the lead, with a birdie at the 476-yard 11th.

But his problems began with a bogey at the 13th, followed by another dropped shot at the 14th and one at the 16th.

McGinley was at the airport preparing to fly out on Friday evening when he heard he had made the cut.

He and McDowell qualified by finishing within 10 shots of the leader after David Toms ended double bogey, triple bogey.

"There's nothing worse than missing the cut and then missing a flight when the next one is not for 24 hours," said McGinley.

"So I went to the airport an hour and a half away and told the girl on the check-in desk the situation.

"I was getting calls from my caddie and my manager and there was half an hour before the gate closed when I was told I had made the cut.

"I obviously wouldn't have taken the flight if I hadn't known, but if I'd then missed the cut it would have been a double whammy."

Meanwhile, Germany's Bernhard Langer (71) was eight over, with Denmark's Thomas Bjorn (75) 10 over.