Woods Starts Hot but Falls to 4th Behind Scott and Former Caddie Cathal Mcnaughton/Reuters Adam Scott watching his putt on the sixth hole. Scott carries a four-stroke lead into the final day. ANNES, England - It would have been quite a talking point, perhaps even quite a distraction, if Adam Scott and Tiger Woods had been dueling for the claret jug together in the final pairing on Sunday at this British Open. In a British summer full of nasty weather, it would have been intriguing to see how chilly the greetings might have been between Woods and his former caddie, Steve Williams. They parted on acrimonious terms, and now Williams works for Scott. But Woods, despite a convincing surge on the front nine at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, could not sustain the momentum on the back nine to give the British tabloids the headline they were craving. Scott, a 32-year-old Australian, certainly did his part, shooting a 68 that could have been lower if some of his beautifully weighted putts for eagles and birdies had rolled just a wee bit longer. At 11 under par, Scott had a four-shot lead heading into Sunday's final round and will be paired with Graeme McDowell, who sank plenty of clutch putts of his own to shoot 67 and get to seven under. Brandt Snedeker, the American who led Scott by a stroke after two rounds, was also at seven under after a day full of adventure and misadventure on this historic course that is finally beginning to dry out. "It was one of those days where you shake your head and wonder what's going on," said Snedeker, who had not made a bogey through 40 holes but then made consecutive bogeys Saturday on the fifth and sixth holes. On No. 5, he missed a short putt for par. 6, he landed in one of Lytham's infamous pot bunkers for the first time this tournament. But he showed impressive pluck on the difficult closing holes, producing birdies on Nos. 16 and 18, where he holed a long curling putt. "I still have a chance tomorrow," said Snedeker, a 31-year-old from Nashville. I've come back from way farther back than this. I realize there's a lot of golf left. Snedeker will be paired on Sunday with Woods, who is five shots behind Scott at six under par. Ernie Els and Zach Johnson are at five under. It is an impressive leader board, brimming with former major champions, although Scott, for the moment, has yet to join that increasingly broad-based club. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour and came agonizingly close to winning the Masters in 2011 on a wild ride of a final day that ultimately finished in favor of the young South African Charl Schwartzel. But Scott is in prime position now and in the lead at a major tournament for the first time after 54 holes. His four-shot cushion could come in quite handy if the Sunday forecasts for strong winds, with gusts up to 30 miles per hour, prove correct. The forecasts have hardly been as solid as Scott's ball striking here on the Lancashire coast. But Scott, who grew up in coastal Australia, has played plenty in the wind. So has McDowell, the expansive Northern Irishman. "The golf course, obviously, it still is a sleeping giant," he said. It's certainly played a lot easier than we all expected in practice. McDowell was also in the final group at this year's United States Open, where he missed a 25-foot putt on the 18th that could have gotten him into a playoff with the young American Webb Simpson. Simpson became the 15th different player in a row to win a major golf tournament. McDowell, who won the 2010 United States Open, is the only man still in contention at Royal Lytham & St. Annes who can keep that remarkable streak from being extended to 16.