San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Woods could tie record with wiretowire win
Tiger Woods shot 4underpar 66 in the third round of the rainhit Zozo Championship in Inzai City, Japan, on Sunday to widen his lead to three strokes over local favorite Hideki Matsuyama.
Because torrential rain washed out play on Friday, the second round of the PGA Tour’s first tournament in Japan was moved to Saturday. To make up for the lost day, the players started the fourth round immediately after finishing the third to get in as many holes as possible.
After a bogey on the par4 first hole, Woods carded six birdies at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club course to finish three rounds at 16under 194. His only other bogey came on the par5 14th.
Matsuyama stayed in contention with a 65 that featured six birdies against a lone bogey. Woods, who has led from the opening round, is making his first start in his 23rd season on the PGA Tour, needing one victory to reach 82 wins and tie the career record held by Sam Snead.
Any holes they can’t get in Sunday will be played on Monday morning.
Rory McIlroy, the highestranked player in the field, fired a 63 that included an eagle on the par5 18th hole, six birdies and a lone bogey, and was in seventh place.
Woods entered the third round with a twostroke lead after backtoback 64s. The second round was played without spectators over safety concerns after the torrential rains. Flooding and mudslides in towns in the surrounding area left at least nine people dead, expanding damage in areas still recovering from recent typhoons.
“Today was just one of those days where we did this at Congressional one year when the derecho (storm) came through there and it was just like a ghost town,” Woods said of the empty grandstands. “This was a little bit different. When you make a putt and you kind of put your hand up, you’re like, hmm, don’t really need to put your hand up because there’s no one clapping.”
LPGA Tour: South Koreans Somi Lee and Seung Yeon Lee were tied for the thirdround lead at the Buick Ladies Championship in Busan, South Korea, the second event on the LPGA’s fourtournament Asian swing. Somi Lee shot 67 and Seung Yeon Lee 68 for 54hole totals of 13under 203. Ha Na Jang was in third place, a stroke behind, after a 68.
Amy Yang (67), Su Oh (67) and secondround leader Danielle Kang (71) were two strokes behind the leaders and tied for fourth.