By Rusty Miller
The Associated Press

DUBLIN, Ohio - Not so long ago, Ben Curtis ached to spar for the lead at the Memorial Tournament in front of family and friends.

He got his wish on Saturday. But instead of trading shots with Ernie Els and Tiger Woods, he shot a pedestrian 1-over-par 73 that left him unfulfilled.

Sure, he still stands just six shots off the lead after sharing the lead in each of the first two rounds. Only six players are ahead of him, led by Ernie Els. Curtis, who grew up 20 minutes away in tiny Ostrander, Ohio, is playing in a tournament he attended as a kid and is backed by hundreds of vocal supporters.

Still, he struggled to put a good spin on a frustrating day.

"Obviously I'm a little disappointed, but to finish pretty strong the last 12 or 13 holes, I feel good and it gives me a little bit of confidence going into tomorrow," Curtis said. "Maybe I'll go out there and shoot a good number."

Curtis' round was undone by a double-bogey on the third hole, dropping him from one shot off the lead to three behind. He never made up the ground, even by playing the final 13 holes in 1 under.

Since stunning the golf world with his shocking upset at the British Open last July, Curtis has struggled. He said he is satisfied that the first three days at the Memorial have proven he can play with the best in the world.

"Any time you get yourself in contention you're happy with it. You just want to keep doing better and try to stay there," he said. "Putting a good round together, that's the thing."

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DALY DOINGS: Even though he is entered in the U.S. Open qualifier in Columbus, John Daly said he will not be there.

Daly, who failed to finish in the top 50 in the world rankings, said his agent signed him up to play in the qualifier. Daly will instead appear at a charity event Monday in Delaware hosted by reigning U.S. Open champion Jim Furyk.

"I feel like I should be in," Daly said. "Everyone knows the rankings are (wrong)."

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IMMOVABLE OBJECTS: It was a wild day at Muirfield Village Golf Club in the third round of the Memorial Tournament. No one and nothing was safe from errant golf shots.

• Tiger Woods hit a spectator with his 3-iron second shot at the 15th hole. He ended up some 50 yards wide of the green, then hit a flop shot to 12 feet and made the putt for birdie.

"I didn't know I hit somebody until later," Woods said.

• K.J. Choi's second shot to the par-5 fifth hole sailed over the green and landed in a woman's shoe. He got a free drop, chipped on and two putted for par.

• Leader Ernie Els' drive at the 15th hit the tripod of a CBS Sports camera which was just right of the fairway.

"I hit the guy's tripod on 15, so that wasn't nice," said Els, whose shot appeared to be bouncing into the fairway before it hit the tripod leg and stayed in the heavy rough. "He (the cameraman) said he was sorry, so I had to take that as an answer."

• Stephen Ames flew the green on the sixth hole and the ball landed underneath a trash bag. He also received a free drop and chipped on but had to settle for a bogey.

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GEOGRAPHY LESSON: K.J. Choi said the reason he is tied for second through 54 holes of the Memorial Tournament is because of his familiarity with the Ohio topography.

"The course really fits me," he said after shooting a 68 in the third round. "The way the course is shaped up and down reminds me of South Korea."

Choi was born in Wando, South Korea, but now lives in The Woodlands, Texas.

He said he feels like he's right back home in his native land when he walks the fairways at Muirfield Village.

"The Columbus area in a lot of ways is similar to South Korea because there is a lot of trees, you get some wind here, and just the elevation of the mountain makes me feel comfortable," Choi said.

Just for the record, there is no mountain anywhere within a lengthy drive from the course.

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DRAMA COACH: Jack Nicklaus knows something about what it takes to win a golf tournament on the final day.

The founder and host of the Memorial Tournament believes that all of the ingredients for a riveting finish can be found in the list of household names at or near the lead after Saturday's third round.

"You've got some really good players on the leaderboard and there are a lot of pretty darned good players not very far behind," said Nicklaus, winner of more than 100 professional tournaments around the world. "No one has really run away from the field. Most of the time you're going to end up with a lot of fellows having a chance to win coming into the last day."

Ernie Els, who leads the Memorial by a shot, agreed.

"It's going to be a great finish with the quality of players up there and the closing holes as tough as they are," he said.

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DIVOTS: Ben Curtis nicked his neck shaving and it started bleeding on the third hole, requiring help from a nearby medical technician. ... Els has led a PGA Tour event through 54 holes 13 times, winning nine times. ... Stephen Ames, just three shots behind Els, has the second-lowest final-round scoring average on the PGA Tour in 2004, behind only Dan Forsman. ... Els, Tim Herron and defending champion Kenny Perry each shot a 66 for the lowest score of the day.