The field did not finish the third round of the Northern Trust Open on Saturday at the soggy Riviera Country Club, but Steve Stricker did his best to ensure that the tournament was almost over. By the time play was suspended by darkness at 5:34 p.m. with 12 of the 81 golfers who began the round left on the course, Stricker had put some daylight between himself and his nearest pursuers. He had four birdies in the 14 holes he completed, and he stood at 14 under par. That put him five strokes clear of the surging Luke Donald, who completed his round of 66 and finished at nine under par, and Andres Romero, the Argentinian who also was nine under after one birdie and 13 pars through 14 holes. Stricker, whose first stroke on Sunday will be a 37-foot putt on the 15th hole, was in control of his game through the on-and-off rain that topped off a two-day deluge of more than three inches. He two-putted for birdie from 20 feet at the first, made a 15-footer for birdie at No. 6 and a 10-footer at No. 8, and hit a pitch to 7 inches at No. 10. 'I was just trying to do my own thing and put blinders on and hit the shots I needed to hit and try to do what I've been doing the last two days,' said Stricker, who is ranked No. 3 in the world but can move up to No. 2 if he wins and No. 2-ranked Phil Mickelson -- who was tied for 19th after a 71 -- finishes lower than fifth. 'It was a good day,' Stricker said. 'You know, it's going to be a long day tomorrow. We've got to be out here at 7 in the morning and got to prepare myself for just a long day. It's going to be tough.' The second-round leader, Dustin Johnson -- who finished out that round by holing a 45-foot birdie chip at the 18th hole that closed out a 67 for a 1-stroke lead over Stricker at 11 under par -- had a rough day. After a birdie at the first hole, he faltered at the third, where he hooked his drive and lost his ball in the high rough. He made a double-bogey there, bogeyed the fourth and ninth holes, birdied the 10th and bogeyed the 11th. 