Harrington running away at Iskandar Johor Open

Padraig Harrington overcame a sore neck to shoot a 4-under 68 Saturday and take a five-shot lead after the third round of the Iskandar Johor Open. Harrington said he injured a muscle in his neck during warmup but didn't want to give up a chance for his first tournament victory in two years. "If I wasn't leading, I would have definitely pulled out," Harrington said. "It's still a problem. It was a bit better at the end but it was a substantial problem. I got a lot of breaks early on as I couldn't really hit the ball at all for a good while." His total of 17-under 199 puts him five shots ahead of five-time Asian Tour winner Lin Wen-tang of Taiwan. Harrington, who is looking for his fist victory since the 2008 PGA Championship, led by eight strokes after 12 holes but needed three putts for a bogey on the 17th. Lin, meanwhile, had two late birdies to finish with a level-par 72. Mardan Mamat of Singapore was six shots back in third after shooting a 70. Noh Seung-yul of South Korea, the Asian Tour Order of Merit leader, and former junior world junior champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand were tied for fourth on 206 after a 71 and 69 respectively.