quot;I wasn't making birdies, and I got kind of behind,quot; said Toms, a former LSU standout. quot;I got kind of behind, and I needed to make up some shots and play smart and play the golf course like you have to. I couldn't make the putts to achieve the score I needed to.quot;

Toms' putting wasn't where it was the past two days. He hit only 11 of 18 greens in regulation and putted 29 times, his highest in three days. The 18th hole summed up Toms' putting woes as missed a 6-foot birdie attempt.

quot;Felt like I hit that putt where I wanted to, and I didn't quite read the grain right,quot; Toms said. quot;It was going that way a lot today.quot;

AUSTRALIAN CLASSIC: Rod Pamping led a strong field of nine Australians left in the tournament with a 4-under 68 that included birdies on the final four holes. He is tied for third place at 9-under 207.

Pampling's birdie stretch at the end helped him recover from a double-bogey on 12, a 492-yard par-4. On his second shot, Pampling used a 5-wood, but the ball was hit into the bunker, and he didn't have many options to play out of it.

He said he missed opportunities on 13 and 14 for birdies before settling in on the final four. He added that he was happy with his overall position.

quot;We've made ground,quot; Pampling said, quot;so that's all you can hope to do.quot;

Of the other Australians in the field, Greg Chalmers (T15, 7 under) and Nathan Green (T21, 6 under) are in the best position.

CROWDED FIELD: The Zurich Classic drew fans going up against a New Orleans Hornets playoff game and the hoopla surrounding the New Orleans Saints' first-round pick and the NFL draft, and Jazz Fest.

None of these were issues last year, as the Classic was held March 27-30 and didn't have any competition -- sports or entertainment. But there were weather issues.

Last year's Saturday crowd was around 30,000, according to tournament director Tommy Fonseca. This year's crowd was closer to 40,000.

quot;I think what you see happening in the city today is reflective of the sports industry and the entertainment industry helping the recovery of New Orleans,quot; Fonseca said.

Fonseca said that in the various tents around the golf course, coverage was being shown of the Hornets' game and the NFL draft. It was also announced that anyone with a Hornets ticket from Saturday's Game 3 win against Denver will be granted free admission to today's final round.

LONGEST YARD: Lucas Glover's 48-foot putt was the longest of the day. The longest drive of the day belonged to Matt Jones, whose tee shot on 13 went 356 yards. The 13th hole was also the scene of the other two top drives of the day -- Ryan Moore hit one 354 yards and Kevin Streelman hit one 351.

The 13th hole played 377 yards Saturday. According to the PGA's ShotLink, 23 golfers went for the green off the tee but only one made it -- Ryan Palmer, who hit a 336-yard drive. He made a putt just more than 27 feet for eagle, the only eagle of the day on the hole.

COVERAGE LOST: As Toms and Charley Hoffman were walking up the 18th fairway, a CBS cameraman covered up his camera and another CBS worker pulled the sound microphone that rested beyond the green. It was past 5 p.m., and their time was over.

CBS cut away as scheduled at 5 p.m., leaving viewers without the chance to see Toms putt on 18 or any of leader Jerry Kelly's 18th hole. He was putting on the 17th green when the coverage ended and shifted to local evening news.