The new clubhouse at Sawgrass is described as Mediterranean Revival, which is what Sergio Garcia will have to produce if he is to have any chance of winning the Players Championship in Florida this evening. By the close of yesterday’s third round, the man whose aim is to become the tournament’s first European winner since 1987 had surrendered a strong position in painfully familiar fashion.

A two-shot swing on the notorious 17th, which Garcia had double-bogeyed the day before, handed the initiative to Paul Goydos, a 43-year-old American with only two previous wins on the PGA Tour. Not only did the latter birdie, the Spaniard three-putted from just a few feet, and was so affected by the recurrence of his Achilles heel that he dropped another on the last.

The upshot of that bogey-bogey finish was a 73 for Garcia, which left him on four under par, three behind Goydos. Another veteran American, Kenny Perry, is in second place on six under, while Bernhard Langer, who had a long, hard day, Phil Mickelson and Jeff Quinney are on two under par.

Since it was made harder, firmer and more demanding around the greens, where closely-mown run-off areas have replaced thick, cloying rough,

the Stadium Course has grown to suit players such as Garcia, a shot-maker who is as long and straight off the tee as he is imaginative with the short clubs.

He has not won on the PGA Tour since the 2005 Booz Allen Classic, thanks mainly to those notorious putting problems, and the demoralising effect they have on the rest of his game. Only the other day he was admitting that it has been difficult to accept scores that have not reflected the quality of his golf. That, though, is the nature of the beast, which is why Garcia has tried everything in his power to tame it, from eccentric grips to belly putters and the short-game coach, Stan Utley, with whom he is now working. CBS commentator David Feherty jokes that the player grew a beard several weeks ago so his putter wouldn’t recognise him.

Garcia, using an old Scotty Cameron blade these days, seemed to be stroking the ball with more confidence this week. He was still languishing down the putting stats, but players usually do when they lead greens in regulation, and the hope is that yesterday’s troubles on the 17th have not set him back further. Too quick, in the past, to apportion blame for his misfortune, he has been in good heart these past few days, even when he carded a five at the 17th on Friday. He started yesterday’s third round one off the pace, and had to wait six holes before picking up a stroke, but the bunker shot he nearly holed on the 11th set up a birdie that gave him a share of the lead. Although he let shots slip on 13 and 14, a birdie on 16 looked to have steadied the ship, until he reached the penultimate hole.

When Langer turned up on the range yesterday, he reported no pain, which must have been worrying news for the rest. They, after all, had seen him produce a stunning 67 on Friday, despite a catalogue of ailments that had led him to contemplate withdrawing from the event before it had even started. Shoulder, knee, groin, back: you name it, the German was nursing it, but a clean bill of health allowed him to begin his third round in explosive style. Having started the day one off the lead, he opened with two straight birdies, the second of which was thanks to a majestic fairway wood that left him with a five-foot eagle putt. That, though, was a misleading indicator of what was to follow as Langer struggled, eventually signing for a 75.

Europe’s likelier lads haven’t covered themselves in glory at Sawgrass. Padraig Harrington’s first tournament back after a three-week absence turned into something of an embarrassment when his second round went off the rails in spectacular fashion. Missing a slew of the short putts he can usually be relied upon to nail, the Irishman somehow allowed his game to unravel with uncharacteristic negligence, and he missed the cut by three.

Other failures to reach the weekend included Paul Casey, Lee Westwood and Justin Rose, whose second-round 73 forced him to miss the cut by four. The Englishman has now failed to make the cut in consecutive events, leading to fears that his second-round collapse at the Masters has caused lasting damage. More alarmingly, he has been complaining again about his long-running back problem, for which he is undergoing renewed physiotherapy.

At least Ian Poulter, another who had his troubles at Augusta, seems to have recovered. The Florida-based player, who has made a habit of hanging around leaderboards at the big events, doesn’t need telling that it is time he topped one on a Sunday night. For all his celebrity, the credibility he craves on the international stage will come only with a win on the PGA Tour, and this would be the perfect place to do it. He quickly announced his intentions yesterday by picking up two strokes in his first four holes, and a huge birdie putt from the fringe of the par-three 13th kept him in contention, but a visit to the lake on the par-four 18th, where he needed a smart up-and-down for double-bogey spoiled what had been a promising day.

A 73 left the Englishman on level par, convinced once again that only the odd bad shot had been his undoing. “I’m not going to go away and hang myself,” said Poulter, insisting that success would be his soon enough. “It’s only a matter of time. I’m knocking on the door.”