Padraig Harrington wrote off his chances of a third successive major after taking a nightmare nine on one hole at Augusta National today.

The quadruple bogey came on the long second and was only one short of the record high score at the hole in Masters history.

Although the Open and US PGA champion came back with five birdies he knew it was never going to be enough after starting the day already seven adrift.

While Harrington signed for a 73 and one-under aggregate, American Kenny Perry, at 48 trying to become the oldest major champion in history, birdied the 10th to go to 12 under and into a one-stroke lead over compatriot Chad Campbell.

There was no real hint of the drama to come when Harrington parred the first and then slightly pulled his drive down the next.

But it ran down a slope into the trees and in trying to get down near the green on the par five Harrington hit a trunk and rebounded further into trouble.

He was forced to take a penalty drop, but his next attempt also hit a tree and went into a ditch.

Despite the overnight tornado which had dumped over an inch of water on the area in under two hours he was able to play the ball out, but could not advance it far at all.

His sixth was just short of the green and by failing to get up and down he crashed to two over.

“Obviously my chances went then,” Harrington said. “These things happen in the game and you can’t do much about it.

Gamble

“I didn’t really think the second shot was a gamble, but there was a root in front of the ball and as I went to hit I backed off a bit.

“I wasn’t concerned about the tree until then, but it came off the club a bit right.

“I’m not really disappointed and I was not deflated at all. It was a ’so be it’ sort of thing. I would not in any way say I have full control over my destiny.

“It wasn’t to be. It’s the nature of the game - my game any way. I’ll build up to the US Open now.

“I’m really gutted about how I chipped, though. I’m really not happy about that - you can’t afford to give shots away and there were three easy ones I made a dog’s dinner of.”

Leading Europeans were Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood, round in 68 and 70 respectively to be joint eighth. But at four under they were eight behind.

Perry and Campbell were joint halfway pacesetters and both had two birdies in front nine 34s before the former edge in front on the next.

Argentina’s Angel Cabrera was only two behind, but then there was a further three-stroke gap to another former US Open champion, Jim Furyk.

Long-shot

Phil Mickelson was alongside Westwood and Poulter with one to play and the 70 of Tiger Woods meant he was on the same mark. He produced three birdies in the last six holes for that, but a 15th major - and fifth green jacket - remains a long-shot.

Alongside Harrington on one under were Justin Rose (71) and 51-year-old Sandy Lyle (73), while Luke Donald’s 72 left him one further back with 19-year-old Rory McIlroy - still in the tournament after being cleared of any wrong-doing in a bunker on the final hole of his second round.

Officials looked into whether McIlroy had kicked the second after leaving his ball in the sand, but after calling him to the club at 8.40pm it was decided there was no violation.

It meant he survived the cut with nothing to spare before adding a 71.

Houston Open winner Paul Casey shot 73 for one over and fellow Englishman Ross Fisher matched that round to be two over.

Woods’ day had begun with a double bogey six. He drove into the trees, missed the green and three-putted.

Over the opening stretch, playing partner Graeme McDowell played the better golf but after covering the first s
ix in one under to be three under for the tournament, the Northern Irishman fell back to one under with a 73.

Lyle had threatened to turn back the clock after five successive birdies late in his second round, but the 1988 champion bogeyed two of the first five on his return and was unable to get back in the hunt.

Mickelson was in the trees at the last, but scrambled a par for a 71 that offered the possibility of him and Woods going head-to-head in the final round.

Perry bogeyed the 11th and 12th to hand the lead back to Campbell, but a two-putt birdie at the next brought them level again on 11 under.

Cabrera was only one back and Furyk just two behind thanks to three successive birdies from the 13th, the third of them a chip-in.

Mickelson said: “I think it will take a 64 or 65, but I think it’s out there.”

Perry was alone in front again when Campbell made a big error on the short 16th. He found the bunker on the right and, with hardly any green to work with, left it in and then missed from five feet for a double bogey five.

Cabrera had birdied the 15th, though, and when he added another from nine feet at the 17th he and Perry were tied at 11 under, two in front of Campbell.

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