Woods failed to make a birdie in his round at a major for the first time in his professional career.

Instinctively, Woods knew what was up.

"Did he just make three?" Woods asked.

Jean Van de Velde indeed had, snaking in a 45-footer for a rare birdie on the closing hole. It gave him a five-shot lead on the field, and seven on Woods.

On a course where birdies are rare, only a collapse of major proportions will give Woods a chance of winning his second major championship.

"I have to hope he shoots a number where he comes back to me," Woods said. "It is going to be awfully tough to catch him."

If Woods is going to catch Van de Velde, he'll have to make a few birdies of his own. That was something he couldn't do while shooting 74 in the third round -- the first time he has failed to make a birdie as a pro in a major tournament.

It was a frustrating round of missed greens and misplaced shots that he shared with playing partner Greg Norman, who shot a 75 and was eight strokes back.

"I didn't really give myself a whole lot of chances to make up shots," Woods said. "I missed an inordinate amount of greens today and had to rely on my short game just to get me around."

Indeed he did.

After making a routine par on the first hole, Woods missed the next five greens, but was able to get the ball up-and-down for par each time.

The streak was destined to end, though, and it did on the next hole when Woods hit it over the green from the rough, putted from 80 feet and then missed a 4-footer for par.

Woods went on to par the next eight holes, blowing his best birdie chance when he 3-putted the par-5 14th after hitting it on in two. Then he made a double bogey on the treacherous 17th hole and parred 18 to finish three rounds at 7-over.

"I didn't give myself a whole lot of birdie chances, basically on 13 and 14 is all," Woods said. "I made a lot of par putts today and really kept myself in this tournament."

It was a round of good course management for Woods, something he has prided himself on in the past year. But he kept the driver in the bag most of the round for fear of hitting it into the deep rough or deep bunkers, and didn't give himself many short irons to the greens.

"You look at the waist high rough and you really can't be more aggressive," Woods said. "I have to be more precise, though. That means hitting the ball closer to the pins. It is not easy to do."

Another thing not easy to do is hold a lead on the final day of a major, something that gives Woods some hope going into the final day.

He has Justin Leonard and Craig Parry two shots in front of him and Van de Velde beyond that. But strange things can happen on windswept Carnoustie, where one misplaced shot can suddenly turn into triple bogey.

"You can make pars and make up shots," Woods said.

Van de Velde doesn't exactly have much experience at holding leads, either. He's a journeyman European Tour player whose only win came in the 1993 Roma Masters