Moving moment with mother gives Aussie Jason Day winning edge

    Jason Day high-fives the Fanatics after yesterday's emotion-fuelled round.

JASON Day has used an emotional meeting with his mother - and a "heart attack in a box" - to spur himself and Australia to the brink of World Cup glory.      

Day met his mother, Dening, for breakfast - the first time they've been face to face since eight of their family perished in last week's killer Philippines typhoon - before firing a near flawless five-under-par 66 to take a one-shot lead into the final round.His heroics also propelled he and fellow Queenslander Adam Scott into a one-shot lead in the teams event lead at Royal Melbourne.Day, 26, desperate for his maiden win on home soil as a professional, said it had been an "incredibly moving" moment to see Dening, whose own mother was among those lost in Typhoon Haiyan."It was only brief, but special … so good to see her," he said."She makes a special chicken. It's salty. We call it salty chicken. It's pretty much a heart attack in a box."If I don't show up for the round, you know where I am," he joked. Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar. End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. Day hasn't been a prolific winner and it frustrates him no end.But what he has done repeatedly throughout his young career is perform well on tough courses and the big stage.

    Jason Day plays his second shot at the 15th hole.

 

And it won't get much bigger for Day in Australia than on Royal Melbourne today.The world No. 16 has a happy knack of playing well in tough conditions and famous courses set up to test the world's best."I just like playing difficult golf courses," he said."Easier (ones) I feel like it's more of a `putt-athon' and anyone can get around an easy golf course."That's why I find I play better at difficult golf courses because you really have to grind it out."And that's exactly what has taken Day to the top this week, on the verge of what would be just his third professional win despite an incredible six top-10 finishes in the past 13 major championships.

Jason Day knows it won’t get much bigger in Australia for him than on Royal Melbourne today. 

 

"I feel like I should be winning every week and when you hold that expectation up, you sometimes try a little bit too hard," said Day, who has just four bogeys despite incredibly trying conditions that have left just 16 players under par."That just plays you out of golf tournaments … so I have learnt to come in neutral - not really think about winning, or who is coming from behind … just gather all the information that I can possibly gather on every single shot and commit to it."But to win my first (tournament in Australia) would be amazing."To be at Royal Melbourne with the calibre of player here this week, how tough the course has been and in such a big, big tournament … I would definitely welcome it with open arms."

    Jason Day and Ricardo Santos line up their putts on the fifth yesterday.

 

Day cashed in early in his third round with two opening birdies, then tamed the back nine with the wind up to come home in 33 and sail past overnight leader Thomas Bjorn, who could only muster an even-par 71.The Queenslander's only blemish came on the short par-three fifth when he blocked his tee shot right and scrambled a bogey."Other than that I hit the ball wonderful today and stayed very patient with the greens."

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Remarkable bunker recovery lifts Adam Scott back into the big picture

   Adam Scott digs deep during the third round to haul himself back into contention at Royal Melbourne.

 

IT will appear on his scorecard as a regulation three, but there was nothing ordinary about it. Adam Scott, by his own admission tiring on his green jacket homecoming tour after wins in consecutive weeks before this World Cup, was in a horrendous lie in a greenside 14th bunker and in distinct danger of another disaster.Remember, he'd taken an almost unthinkable quintuple bogey nine on Thursday and a double-bogey six from nowhere on Friday as he battled his normally flawless swing for the first time in three weeks.And here he was, about to blast from a half-buried lie to a pin downhill, downwind and only 5m from his stance.Former touring pro Paul Gow, a three-time winner in the United States, said he'd do well to keep his shot within 8m of the pin.For how hard he'd fought to get back into the hunt after his previous calamities, Scott knew he couldn't afford it again.And with the weight of the team event, the "Scotty-slam" and his own expectations firmly on his shoulders, the Queenslander simply nipped it cleanly 3m past the pin and calmly rolled in the par putt - just as champions do. Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar. End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. Scott then made birdies on 15 and 17 - albeit split by a bogey on the brutal 16th - and signed for what he said was an "ugly" three-under-par 68 to haul himself back into a tie for eighth when the masses had dared to write him off."The rhythm wasn't good, they weren't coming out spot on line. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't crisp," he said."That one on 14 was really good, though. I didn't really give myself much of a chance there and I hit about as good a shot as I could and yeah, it was a good day."I'm knocking the putts in that you want to make, all those ones, par saves and a few 10-footers that I got for birdie rolled in."The putter is actually starting to feel pretty good, so if I can get the rhythm back for tomorrow, you never know, it could be one of those days."Those days have become more common for Scott than most on the planet - and if he does get rolling in the final round, be sure that his name will send a shudder up the leaderboard."I've been saying there's a really low round in me and it hasn't come out yet."I'd like to find it tomorrow."Scott referred to playing Royal Melbourne so many times in a row - after last week's Australian Masters triumph on the same course - as being like "Groundhog Day".For the remaining seven players above him after his long haul back, they'd want to hope that's not entirely true.

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Stuart Manley has spectacular blow-up after hole-in-one fails to bag him a new Mercedes at World Cup

WELSH golfer Stuart Manley walked to the back of the tee and patted the shining silver Mercedes Benz at Royal Melbourne on Saturday. He thought he would collect the keys later after his centimetre-perfect eight-iron at the 161m par-three hole disappeared into the cup for a spectacular ace.Alas, a World Cup official broke the bad news as the excited 34-year-old watched his playing partner putt out - the hole-in-one prize, valued at $129,000, applied only for Sunday.

"I asked him can you let me know if it does count because I was pretty pumped up. I was devastated,'' Manley said after a one-over 72 left him tied eighth heading into today's final round.If that wasn't bad enough, what followed can only be described as golf's equivalent of a train wreck as Wales lone representative in the tournament took 11 strokes to complete the 401m par-four fourth hole.After Manley's drive buried in heavy rough, he could only chip out sideways before chunking his approach shot into a greenside bunker. He blasted through the green onto a hill and watched his chip shot scurry across the green and down a slope, coming to rest 20m below the green.He admitted he lost count of the number of times he chipped and watched in dismay as the ball twice rolled back to his feet. Eventually, he managed to get the ball to settle on the back-to-front sloping putting surface and took three putts to finish the hole a horrible seven-over par. Start of sidebar. Skip to end of sidebar. End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar. "I was still pumped up walking up to the tee. I just made a couple of bad swings on that hole, it's just the way it goes, I guess,'' Manley said."I kept asking my caddie 'how many is that?' I actually thought it was one less, but I wasn't going to argue. My head was pretty fried, to be honest."I heard a few giggles and laughs and cheers when I actually finished out. I felt pretty bad at the end, but it's golf and I'm glad to still be in the top 10.''

 

Manley, who had started his third round with birdie, birdie and the hole-in-one eagle, regrouped to pick up a birdie two holes later, grabbed another at the short 14th and then holed a 15m chip for an eagle at the par-five 15 on the way to his adventurous 72 and two-under for the tournament."If someone had said you'll be two-under at the end after an 11, I would've taken that.,'' he said."I'm pretty strong mentally, but it was a slap in the face and gives you a wake-up call. I was playing good golf, I just had one nightmare hole. I started birdie, birdie and obviously the hole-in-one. I knew the game was there to bounce back.''It's a fair bet that he will never again sign a scorecard that starts 3-4-1-11 for the first four holes.Manley made the long dash to Melbourne after regaining his European tour card at a six-rounds qualifying school in northern Spain last week.He didn't even have time to get behind the wheel of his car at home in Aberdare. "It's a Vauxhall Insignia. It's fairly new, but it doesn't compare to that Mercedes,'' he said.
 

AN ANYTHING-BUT-REGULATION 72

Stuart Manley's amazing third round
              
Hole Par Score To par

1 4 3 -1

25 4 -2

3 3 1 -4

4 4 11 +3

5 3 3 +3

6 4 3 +2

7 4 4 +2

8 4 5 +3

9 4 4 +3

10 4 4 +3

11 4 4 +3

12 4 4 +3

13 4 4 +3

14 3 2 +2

15 5 3 E

16 4 4 E

17 4 4 E

18 4 5 +1

THE HORRROR HOLE

1. Drove into rough, 2. Chipped out sideways onto the fairway, 3. Dumped approach shot into front bunker, 4. Blasted onto a hill behind the green, 5. Pitch ran across the green and down a slope in front coming to rest 20m below the green, 6. Chip rolled back to his feet, 7. Second attempt again rolled back off the green, 8. More solid pitch ran 12m past the pin, 9. Putt ran 2m past the cup. 10. Putt up the hill to near the cup. 11 Tap in for a seven-over 11

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LPGA: Natalie Gulbis climbs into a three-way tie for top spot at Titleholders tournament

 

Natalie Gulbis moved into a three-way tie for the lead after three rounds of the LPGA CME Group Titleholders in Florida.

Gulbis bounced back from a bogey at the first and carded eight birdies in a fine round of 65 to join Gerina Piller and Pornanong Phatlum at the top of the leaderboard.

The portents were not good for Gulbis when she hooked a five-iron into the water on the par-five first, leading to an ugly six, but she soon regained her composure and rattled off three straight birdies from the third.

Further strokes were picked up at the eighth and ninth and three more birdies on the back nine meant Gulbis finished the day on 11-under.

Impressive Solheim Cup rookie Piller and Thailand star Phatlum were tied for third going into the day and carded matching rounds of five-under 67, neither dropping a shot.

But round of the day came from Women's Open champion Stacy Lewis, who stormed through the field with a nine-under 63 that included eight birdies and an eagle two at the par-four third.

That round all but wraps up the Vare Trophy for Lewis, the award given to the player with the lowest scoring average over the season.

She sits in a tie for fourth place with Shanshan Feng of China, American phenom Lexi Thompson and Germany's Sandra Gal, who led the tournament at halfway.

Gal got off to a nightmare start, dropping three shots in her first four holes, and she was only able to get one of those back over the rest of the round, but the quartet are still only two strokes behind the three leaders.

Michelle Wie moved into eighth place with a fine six-under par 66 but there was no improvement from teenage star Lydia Ko, who carded a level-par 72 to lie nine shots off the pace in a tie for 25th.

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South African Open: Charl Schwartzel one ahead in Johannesburg

 

South African Charl Schwartzel is on course to win his own national open after carding a third round 69 to claim a one-stroke lead in Johannesburg.

The 29-year-old, who was tied for the lead overnight, offset five birdies with a brace of bogeys to secure a slender advantage over two European pros.

 

Schwartzel, the world No 22, is one of only two players inside the top 100 teeing-up at Glendower this week, and on Sunday will partner Dane Morten Orum Madsen in the concluding round.

Madsen, ranked 244, is tied for second following a 69, while Italian Marco Crespi is also a single stroke adrift after a 70.

Schwartzel remarked: "It was a bit up and down but I think I did what I needed to do.

"You always think some things could have been done better."

Otto on the charge

Also well placed is 2011 champion Hennie Otto who conjured up the round of the day.

The burly South African has fired consecutive rounds of 66 and 65 and, on Saturday afternoon, endured mixed bag.

An eagle three at the second was more than wiped out by a triple-bogey seven at the ninth.

But Otto's calamitous finish to the front nine did not deter the 37-year-old from Boksburg who came home in 29 shots thanks to seven birdies in his final eight holes.

The brilliant back nine burst left the former winner just two behind Schwartzel who is seeking to become the 15th home player to lift the trophy in the last 20 stagings of the South African Open.

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World Cup of Golf: Jason Day leads after best-of-day 66 in Melbourne

 

Jason Day will take a one-stroke lead into the final round of golf's World Cup after posting a joint best-of-day five-under-par 66 at Royal Melbourne on Saturday.

The Queensland-born 25-year-old's excellent performance also enabled Australia to take over at the top of the team standings.

His third round included six birdies, as he moved one-stroke clear of Denmark's Thomas Bjorn who carded a level par 71 on day three.

Third round leaderboard

-9 J Day (Aus)
-8 T Bjorn (Den)
-6 M Kuchar (US)
-5 F Molinari (Ita)
-4 K Streelman (US)

In 54 holes over one of the world's most respected venues, Day has made just four bogeys.

Also within touching distance are Americans Matt Kuchar and Kevin Streelman, and Italy's Francesco Molinari.

Kuchar's third round 68 leaves him three strokes adrift while Molinari is a shot further back after a 66.

Streelman is one behind Molinari - and five off the pace - following a disappointing 74, not helped by dropping four shots in his opening four holes.

Streelman's mediocre score allowed Australia to assume first place in the team competition.

        

Stuart Manley experienced ecstasy and disappointment in the space of a few minutes during the World Cup in Australia.

                    

Day's team-mate Adam Scott made 68 on Saturday to help the hosts slip one stroke clear of the United States.

Japan are third - seven shots behind - while Denmark are nine off the pace.

A delighted Day said: "You just have to have some patience. I like playing difficult golf courses, that's what I do best."

As for the home challenge Ireland, represented by Graeme McDowell and Shane Lowry, lead the way in a share of sixth spot, while England and Scotland are two strokes further behind.

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Germany's Sandra Gal takes three-shot lead into weekend at LPGA Titleholders

 

Sandra Gal defied blustery conditions in Florida to open up a three-shot lead at the halfway stage of the LPGA Titleholders Championship.

The German followed up her opening 64 with a solid three-under 69 to claim a commanding lead over Sun Young Yoo at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples.

Gal mixed two birdies with a pair of bogeys in a steady front-nine 36 before picking up three shots over the last seven holes to remain at the top of the leaderboard.

Yoo emerged as Gal's closest challenger as she kept a bogey off her card in a second-consecutive 68 - one of only 10 sub-70 scores on the second day.

Two-time major winner Cristie Kerr earned a share of third on six under despite a double-bogey at the first hole and another dropped shot at the third.

The American bounced back with three straight birdies from the sixth and added another at 12 before making a superb eagle at the penultimate hole to return a 69.

Kerr is alongside compatriot Gerina Piller, who fired a flawless, best-of-the-day 67, and Thailand's Pornanong Phatlum, while Gal's Solheim Cup team-mate Anna Nordqvist lost ground on the leaders after a 73 left her six adrift.

Lydia Ko's professional debut again attracted large galleries, although the 16-year-old sensation looks unlikely to claim her third LPGA Tour title after she battled to a second one-under 71.

Catriona Matthew, the lone Briton in the field, also has plenty of ground to make up after an erratic 73 which featured a bogey, one double-bogey and an eagle at 17.

The season finale, open to players who posted top-three finishes this year, features a top prize of $700,000 - the largest on the LPGA Tour.

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Tiger Woods' World Challenge will move from California to Florida next year

 

Tiger Woods has announced that his World Challenge tournament will move from California to Florida from next season.

The invitational end-of-season charity event has been played at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks since 2001.

But the tournament host has now arranged to stage the event at Isleworth Country Club near Orlando, where Woods regularly worked on his game until moving to south Florida two years ago.

Isleworth has also hosted the Tavistock Cup on a number of occasions since its launch in 2004, and several of the world's top players are based there and at the neighbouring Lake Nona.

"I'm looking forward to this next phase of the World Challenge and what it can bring to Florida."
Tiger Woods

The world No 1, who has won the title five times, confirmed the tournament will now benefit both the Tiger Woods Foundation and the Tavistock Group.

"We have a longstanding relationship with Tavistock Group and my friend, Joe Lewis, and I am thrilled to see it grow in support of our foundations," said Woods in a statement on his foundation's website.

"We've enjoyed 15 amazing years in Southern California, which helped us launch our flagship Tiger Woods Learning Center.

Next phase

"It serves as a lasting tribute to the local fans that have supported us year after year. I'm looking forward to this next phase of the World Challenge and what it can bring to Florida."

The elite, 18-player tournament now offers world ranking points due to the high quality of the field, and the event has raised over $25m for the Tiger Woods Foundation since its launch in 1999.

"We've been looking for ways to expand our relationship with Tavistock and this is a perfect fit," said foundation president and CEO Greg McLaughlin.

"The golf season has evolved significantly since our first tournament in 1999. We are very proud of the $25 million the World Challenge has raised, and we've been evaluating the best path forward to continue this work.

"We are excited to partner with Tavistock Group and honored to bring our tournament to Isleworth."

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