CARLSBAD, California, 27 February 2005 — World No. 1 Vijay Singh and title-holder Tiger Woods led a parade of seeds to the exit door at the WGC-Accenture Matchplay Championship on Friday, leaving the $7.5 million event stripped of its marquee players. A day of shocks at the soggy La Costa Resort and Spa began with the top two seeds Singh and Woods eliminated in the second round and continued into the third round with No. 3 Phil Mickelson and No. 6 Sergio Garcia also being bundled out. Only a stirring comeback from three down by South African fourth seed Retief Goosen to salvage a 19-hole win over American Chad Campbell prevented the day from being a total wipeout for the leading four players.
Having never progressed beyond the second round in five attempts, Singh’s 3 & 2 defeat by American Jay Haas barely qualified as a surprise. But Nick O’Hern’s 3 & 1 triumph over Woods ranked among the tournament’s biggest upsets, the Australian ending the world number two’s 13-match unbeaten streak at the La Costa and his bid for an unprecedented third consecutive title here.
Calcavecchia Claims One-Shot Lead in Tucson
Mark Calcavecchia fired a seven-under-par 65 for 129 on Friday to open a one-shot lead over fellow American Billy Mayfair at the halfway point of the PGA Tour’s three million-dollar Tucson tournament. Most of the world’s top-ranked golfers are dueling this week in the World Match Play Championship near San Diego, where players have had to contend not only with the unforgiving match play format but also with a rain-sodden course. Mayfair did not need to go that long on any of his putts. He had five birdies in a bogey-free 67.
Ogilvy had a 66 that could have been a lot lower had he not missed three consecutive birdies from his opening hole, the 10th, and had he avoided a three-putt bogey at 14. He got going after that with birdies at six of his last 12 holes. Lucas Glover (67) and Australian Gavin Coles (65) were tied with Ogilvy. Another dozen players were within five shots of the lead.
Mario Tiziani, who shared the first-round lead with Mayfair, managed just a 72 to fall six shots off the pace.
Miyazato Leads Aussie Masters by Three Shots
At Gold Coast, Australia, Japan’s Ai Miyazato struck turbulence for the first time in the Australian Ladies Masters but she will still take a three-shot lead into the final round yesterday. The 19-year-old carded a two-under 70 to improve to 15-under 201 after 54 holes to lead Sweden’s Cecilia Ekelundh (68-69-67) on 12 under with four-time winner Karrie Webb of Australia surging into title contention with a five-under 67 to be 11-under 205.
Miyazato, who blasted a course record equaling nine-under 63 in Thursday’s opening round, could not recapture the same form in Saturday’s third round at Royal Pines coming away with five birdies and three bogeys in a mixed round.
Webb led the field in greens in regulation but still had 30 putts. But she said she felt a lot happier with the way her new putter sat down behind the ball compared to her old heel shaft one which sat on an angle.
Webb felt playing with Miyazato on the first two days of the Masters may have fired up the talented teenager who equaled Webb’s 1999 course record.
Young Italian Veronica Zorzi, who went out in a six-under 31, threatened momentarily when she joined Miyazato in the lead after birdieing her ninth hole before dropping three shots coming home for a five-under 67.
England’s Kirsty Taylor (67-71-69) was on a hot streak early in her round with four front nine birdies but could not add to that tally over the last nine holes dropping one shot. American amateur Tiffany Joh handled the big occasion of playing alongside Miyazato well, shooting a one over 73 to be eight strokes behind.
Late Errors Cost O’Malley Lead at New Zealand PGA
In Wellington, Australian Peter O’Malley dropped three shots in the last three holes and had to settle for a share of the lead with Americans Jeff Gove and Johnson Wagner after the third round of the New Zealand PGA yesterday.
The trio finished the day locked together on 11-under-par 205 at the Clearwater Resort in Christchurch.
Australian Jarrod Lyle (72) was one stroke off the pace while Colombian Camilo Villegas, Australian Kim Felton and Americans Brandt Snedeker and Jerry Smith were a further shot back on 207.
O’Malley, a six-times winner on the European and Australasian tours, led by three strokes before four-putting the 16th for a double bogey and three-putting the last for a bogey.
