ATLANTA, 7 November 2005 — American Bart Bryant stayed on course for a third PGA Tour title by firing a four-under-par 66 in the Tour Championship third round on Saturday.
The 42-year-old journeyman, making his first appearance at the season-ending event, finished on 14-under 196 at the East Lake Golf Club, three strokes ahead of defending champion Retief Goosen who returned a 69.
South African Goosen, who shared the overnight lead with Bryant, got his day off to a flying start with birdies at the first two holes and another at the sixth but could not match Bryant over the tough closing stretch.
World No. 1 Tiger Woods closed to within four of the lead with another gritty display, a 67 leaving him at 10-under 200 and in sight of his seventh title of the season.
The 10-times major winner is also on the brink of becoming golf’s first $11 million man.
A late bloomer who did not claim the first of his two career titles until stepping into the winner’s circle last year at the Texas Open, Bryant is poised to provide a Cinderella finish to the season if he can fend off golf’s biggest names for one more day and claim the $6.5 million Tour finale.
Bryant has maintained all week that he does not fit in among the 29 players that make up the tournament’s elite field but once again on Saturday his play said something different.
Opening his round in style with a birdie at the first, he played error-free golf in a controlled front nine, picking up shots at seven and nine before carding his first bogey of the day — and just his fourth of the week — at the par-four 13th.
Bryant immediately hit back, however, with a birdie at 14 before ending his round in spectacular fashion by blasting out of a greenside bunker at the last for another birdie to secure a three-shot cushion going into Sunday.
After getting to three under after the first six holes, Goosen looked poised to run away from Bryant until back-to-back bogeys on seven and eight brought the world No. 4 back to the American. The smooth-swinging South African recovered with a birdie on nine but could not build on the momentum over the inward stretch and finished with eight pars and a bogey on 17.
Woods made a stuttering start to his round with a bogey five at the first, at one stage falling seven shots off the pace. After six consecutive pars, he finally mounted his charge and roared into the turn with back-to-back birdies on eight and nine before dropping another shot at the 12th. A late rally, which included three birdies over the final five holes, left the 10-times major winner within striking distance of his second Tour Championship crown.
Sorenstam Wins Record Fifth Straight Mizuno Classic
In Otsu, Japan, Annika Sorenstam became the first player in LPGA Tour history to win a tournament five straight times, shooting an 8-under 64 in steady drizzle yesterday for a three-stroke victory in the Mizuno Classic.
“Obviously I’m very, very happy to get a chance to do something today that nobody has ever done before,” Sorenstam said.
“I felt pressure all week, but I was able to control my nerves and make some birdies when I needed to. To come here and do something like this is very gratifying.”
Sorenstam, 95 under in 15 rounds on the Seta course during her winning streak, broke a tie with Laura Davies for the LPGA Tour record for consecutive victories in an event. Davies won the Standard Register Ping from 1994-97.
Sorenstam pulled away from playing partners Jennifer Rosales and Young Kim with birdies on Nos. 14 and 15 and also birdied the final two holes — both par 5s — for the second straight day. After opening with five straight pars, Sorenstam made an eagle on the sixth hole — draining a 15-foot putt after a 4-wood approach from 218-meters (240 yards) — and added birdies on Nos. 8 and 11 to tie Rosales and Kim for the lead.
