Sharma holds his nerve and the lead in Mexico
MEXICO CITY » Shubhankar Sharma held his never to the end and held a two-shot lead going into the final round of the Mexico Championship.
Now the 21-year-old from India has one last round to hold off a few of golf’s biggest names.
Sharma stretched his lead to as many as four shots Saturday at Chapultepec Golf Club until he started dropping a few shots late on the back nine. After clipping a tree and going into the bunker on the 18th, he holed a 15-foot par putt for a 2-under 69.
That left him 18 holes away from capping off his amazing rise. Just three months ago, Sharma had yet to win a tournament outside India’s developmental circuit, didn’t have a European Tour card and was No. 462 in the world. A victory in this World Golf Championship would be his third in his last eight starts and likely put him in the top 25.
His biggest test might come from names on the leaderboard.
Phil Mickelson played bogey-free for a 65 that will put him in the last group with Sharma and Tyrrell Hatton of England, who had a 64. Also two shots behind were Masters champion Sergio Garcia and Rafa Cabrera Bello, who each had a 69.
Another shot back was Dustin Johnson, the No. 1 player in the world and defending champion, who managed a 68 despite playing the par 5s on the back nine in 1 over.
Sharma, the only two-time winner on the European Tour this year who leads the Race to Dubai, didn’t blink.
Even so, there was some emotion packed into those two short fist-pumps when his par putt dropped on the final hole. He was at 13-under 200. Mickelson, coming off three straight top 10s for the first time since 2009, is in his best position yet. His drivers aren’t as wild, he is making more key putts to keep the round going and his iron game is solid as ever.
“It’s been a long time since my game’s been back to this point,” Mickelson said. “I’m back playing some of my best golf again. It will start to click and get better and better as the year goes on.”
Sharma had never seen such large crowds following him, and it’s still hard to digest seeing the so many players he only knew from the middle of the night in Chandigarh, when he would stay up to watch the majors.
Korda shoots 65 for 1-stroke lead
SINGAPORE » Florida teenager Nelly Korda shot a third-round 7-under 65 Saturday to take a one-stroke lead at the LPGA Tour’s Women’s World Championship after Danielle Kang made her first bogeys of the tournament to slip back into second place.
Korda had eight birdies and one bogey as she finished on 15-under 201 heading into the final round at the Sentosa Golf Club.
Kang started the day leading by four strokes and finished trailing Korda by one after a 70. She dropped her first shot of the tournament on the 15th after going 50 holes without making a bogey, then made another mistake on 18.
Brooke Henderson had a bogey-free 65, matching Korda for the low round of the day, to join Minjee Lee (68) in a tie for third at 11 under.
Stricker hits in water, gives up lead
TUCSON, ARIZ. » Steve Stricker lost the Cologuard Classic lead when he drove into the water on the par-5 18th in a closing double bogey.
A year after losing a chance to win the event in his PGA Tour Champions debut when his 3-wood went left into the water on the final hole, Stricker did it again Saturday.
Stricker ended up with a 3-under 70, leaving him a stroke behind Tommy Tolles with a round left on Omni Tucson National’s Catalina Course.