India’s Sharma, 21, up by 2 strokes
Shubhankar Sharma held his nerves to the end and holds a two-shot lead going into the final round of the World Golf Championships’ Mexico Championship in Mexico City.
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 four shots Saturday at Chapultepec Golf Club before dropping two 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 2under-par 69. He was at 13-under 200.
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 Sunday would be his third in his past eight starts and likely put him in the top 25 in the world rankings.
Phil Mickelson played bogey-free for a 65 that will put him in the last group with Sharma and England’s Tyrrell Hatton, who had a 64. Also two shots behind were Masters champion Sergio Garcia and Rafael 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.
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.
“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.”
Justin Thomas also has new life after setting the course record with a 62, breaking by one the mark Jordan Spieth set last year.
Spieth birdied three of his last four holes and was six behind.
PGA Tour Champions: Steve Stricker lost the Cologuard Classic lead when he drove into the water on the par-5 18th in a closing double bogey, the second straight year he has done that in Tucson.
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. Tolles bogeyed 18 for a 70 after following Stricker into the water. He was at 11-under 135.
LPGA Tour: Florida teenager Nelly Korda shot a third-round 7-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead at 15-under 201 at the Women’s World Championship in Singapore after Danielle Kang made her first bogeys of the tournament to slip back into second place.
European Tour: George Coetzee opened a twoshot lead heading into the final round of the Tshwane Open at Pretoria, South Africa, after a 3-under 68. The overnight leader had five birdies and two bogeys in his home city to move to 14-under overall.