The Associated Press

DULUTH, Ga. - Zach Johnson's first full day as the leader on the PGA Tour felt very familiar to him. He played solidly, made putts when he needed to, and held on to the top spot.

"I really didn't get nervous," Johnson said. "It doesn't feel that different. It's just golf."

The rookie shot a 4-under 68 Saturday to take a three-stroke lead over Padraig Harrington and Scott Hend after the third round of the BellSouth Classic.

Harrington shot a 67, rallying after a triple bogey by making six birdies on his last 10 holes in the last event before the Masters. Coming off a second-place finish in The Players Championship last week - his second straight runner-up finish in that tournament - the Irish star is looking for his first victory on the PGA Tour.

"It would be important to win on the U.S. tour," Harrington said. "I'm not putting pressure on myself to do it (here) or anything like that. We'll wait and see how it goes."

After leading the developmental Nationwide Tour in earnings in 2003, Johnson is off to a solid start this season. He has made four of six cuts and $335,031 - good for 58th on the money list - and he's coming off a tie for sixth at Bay Hill in his previous start.

So far, life on the PGA Tour hasn't fazed him.

"The crowds can probably get to you a little bit, with their chanting and whatnot," Johnson said. "But I kind of enjoy that."

He got a bit off track in the middle of the third round. On the par-5 10th, Johnson pulled his drive into the rough, and he put his next shot through the fairway into a bunker.

An indifferent pitch left him in a green-side bunker, but he splashed out close to the hole and made his par putt. "I did a good job of scrambling, especially early on the back nine," Johnson said. "I hit some squirrelly shots, but I still felt good about things."

He found more sand on the next three holes, including after his drive on 13, a short par 4. Another up and down there gave him only his second birdie of the day and steadied him. Down the stretch, he made back-to-back birdies on 16 and 17, then made a brilliant par on the par-5 18th to finish the round at 13-under 203.

Johnson missed the green well right and long with his second shot, and this time, he was left wishing he'd ended up in the sand.

"That's what I was trying to do," he said. "If it went in the bunker, that would have been fine."

But it didn't. His ball came to rest on a fan's towel in the gallery, and after a drop, he faced a nervy chip over the bunker, with the green running away from him to the pond protecting the front of the green.

"I was just trying to barely get it over the bunker," Johnson said. "If it got over the bunker, it would probably release on the green. If it stays in the bunker, that's fine, because it's not really the hardest of bunker shots."

He pulled the shot off masterfully. Johnson lofted the ball over the sand, and it landed on the fringe and trickled to the middle of the green. He missed the long birdie chance, but par was good enough this time.

Hend also had a 68, including an eagle on the last, where he hit a 3-iron from 251 yards to only 4 feet.

Three share lead at Algarve Open

PORTIMAO, Portugal - Ignacio Garrido and Miguel Angel Jimenez birdied the final hole Saturday and joined David Lynn in holding a two-stroke lead after three rounds of the Algarve Open.

Lynn, an Englishman seeking his first European tour victory, eagled No. 18 for a 6-under-par 66. The two Spaniards responded with birdies, leaving all three at 11-under 205. Garrido had a 69 and Jimenez, the second-round leader, shot a 70.

"I like the buzz of it all," said Lynn, twice a runner-up on the tour. "You are playing for something. You have to relish these times. Every shot means something."

Five players were at 9 under: Ireland's Peter Lawrie (70), Scotland's Raymond Russell (65), Wales' David Park (66), England's Andrew Raitt (67) and France's Gregory Havret (68).

LPGA: Sorenstam scrambles, stays in front

LOS ANGELES - Annika Sorenstam is where she's tough to catch - in front.

Sorenstam scrambled her way to a 2-under 70 on Saturday to take a two-shot lead over Rosie Jones and Meg Mallon into the final round of the Office Depot Championship.

Sorenstam, the defending champion who also won three years ago and was the runner-up in 2002, was at 4-under 138.

Thirty-three of her 49 career LPGA Tour victories have come when she led going into the final round, which she has done 52 times.

"I will stay out of trouble as much as possible, leave the ball below the hole so I can be more aggressive with putts, and we will see what happens," she said.

"On this golf course, it's tough to catch somebody."

Sorenstam, 13th last week in the Kraft Nabisco, is seeking her third victory in four tournaments this year. She opened the season with a win in a non-tour event in Australia and won the Safeway International two weeks ago in Arizona.

Jones shot her second straight 70, and Mallon had a 71 at El Caballero Country Club, with the course's large, undulating greens not yielding many low scores.

Jones knows it might be difficult to overtake Sorenstam.

"She is a very, very strong player on Sunday," Jones said. "She usually makes less mistakes than the rest of us."