Tiger on prowl at Doral
Doral could not have asked for a better duel.
Phil Mickelson continued to bully the Blue Monster with a 6-under-par 66. Tiger Woods put on a dynamic charge Saturday in the Ford Championship at Miami, driving the green on the 347-yard 16th and making good on a birthday pledge to his father with a 9-under 63 that left him two shots behind.
If a monstrous crowd didn’t get enough entertainment, it was left with the anticipation of golf’s two most popular players going head-to-head in their first Sunday showdown in two years.
Woods overwhelmed the back nine with his power, no shot more memorable than the 16th when he swung from the heels and wound up 45 feet away for a two-putt birdie. Mickelson was magical again with his wedge, hitting a variety of shots from thick grass that gave him birdie chances.
Mickelson, seeking his third victory of the year, was at 20-under 196, the 10th consecutive round in stroke play he has been atop the leaderboard.
Zach Johnson, who had to pull out of the pro-am with a bad back, shot a 64 and was six shots behind at 14 under, along with James Driscoll (67) and defending champion Craig Parry (67). Top-ranked Vijay Singh couldn’t keep pace with a 68 and was seven shots behind, joined by two-time Masters champion Jose Maria Olazabal (70) and former U.S. Open champion Jim Furyk (67).
European PGA Tour
Miguel Angel Jimenez avoided the mistakes that slowed Ernie Els, posting a tidy 4-under 68 at Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for a one-shot lead in the Dubai Desert Classic.
Els still was in great shape to win for the first time this year, despite a rugged start to his round. He took four putts from 20 feet to make double bogey on the opening hole, then recovered with seven birdies for a 67 that left him one shot behind going into the final round.
“I still don’t know what I did there on the first hole,” Els said. “I guess you are never too old to learn. You have got to respect the old game. I did try on each of those putts. The only reason I can think of is that the practice green was a bit too fast than the ones out there.”
Jimenez was at 16-under 200 and will be paired with Els today.
Colin Montgomerie, desperate for a victory that would ensure him another trip to Augusta National, had a 6-under 66 and four birdie putts on the final holes that narrowly missed. Still, he was only three shots behind, alone in third.
Montgomerie, No. 63 in the world ranking, needs to get into the top 50 by the end of the month to avoid missing out on the Masters.
“Those were four glorious chances, and not one went in,” Montgomerie said of his finish. “Two hit the lip and two were dead on line. That’s golf, I suppose. But I can’t feel bad about 66. I hit the ball solid, as I have been doing ever since the Target World Challenge before Christmas last year.”
Jimenez had two birdies on front and back nine, including one on the 18th to keep him in the lead.
LPGA Tour
Cristie Kerr shot a 4-under 68 at Huixquilucan, Mexico, to take a two-stroke lead over Moira Dunn and South Korea’s Sae-Hee Son into the final round of the MasterCard Classic, the first LPGA Tour event in Mexico since 1975.
Annika Sorenstam, playing her first event of the year, was three strokes behind after a 71, while Mexico’s Lorena Ochoa shot a 75 to fall eight back at 2 over.
“I’m not too far behind,” Sorenstam said. “I’m in a position where I have a chance tomorrow. That’s really what matters.”
Kerr, second to Jennifer Rosales last week in the SBS Open in Hawaii, had six birdies – four on the back nine – and two bogeys to reach 6 under on the Bosque Real Country Club course. A three-time winner last year, Kerr has successfully adjusted to the high-altitude conditions on the course overlooking 7,400-foot high Mexico City.
“We have a little system. I’m not really going to get into it because it’s like my little system,” Kerr said. “But we pretty much know what the yardages are playing and we judge accordingly.”
Dunn shot a 72, and Son had her second straight 70.