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| September 26, 2005 | Monday | Sha'aban 21, 1426 |
Presidents Cup deadlocked after day three
GAINESVILLE (Virginia), Sept 25: Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk staged a late rally to win their afternoon fourball match before the US and the Internationals ended the third day of the Presidents Cup deadlocked at 11-11 on Saturday. Trailing by 6-1/2 points to 5-1/2 overnight, the US pulled level on 8-1/2 points after winning the morning foursomes 3-2.
Unbeaten in the three previous editions staged at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, the US were unable to forge ahead in the afternoon as the sides shared the fourball encounters with two wins apiece and one half.
For the first time on their home soil, the Americans will not hold the upper hand going into Sunday’s last-day singles matches.
South Africa’s Retief Goosen and Australia’s Adam Scott put the first point of the afternoon on the board for the Internationals with a crushing 5 and 4 win over Scott Verplank and Justin Leonard.
Scott and Goosen ripped through the front nine with seven birdies, including six in a row from the fourth.
The red-hot Internationals maintained their scorching pace round the turn before finishing the match with a total of 10 birdies in 14 holes.
However, Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco eclipsed that scoreline with a 6 and 5 triumph over Australian duo Peter Lonard and Nick O’Hern, preserving their unbeaten record this week after getting to eight under par after 13 holes.
US PGA champion Mickelson, who lost all five matches he played at the last Presidents Cup in South Africa in 2003, has been an inspired figure over the last three days and has relished his partnership with a motivated DiMarco.
In the most intriguing match-up, world number one Woods and Furyk recovered from one down with six to play in their fourball contest with Fiji’s Vijay Singh and Australian Stuart Appleby before clinching the 16th and 18th for a two up victory.
Bothered by a sore back, US Masters and British Open champion Woods relied on his partner to do most of the work as the pairing fought to stay in the match over the first 12 holes after three times trailing by a hole.
Woods, however, came up with the big shot when it was needed most, rolling in a 17-foot birdie putt at the par-four 16 to put the Americans ahead for the first time before they sealed the win at the last.
The match-up between Woods and world number two Singh began in the morning foursomes, a daylong grudge match rooted in the 2000 Presidents Cup when the Fijian’s caddy showed up on the first tee sporting a hat that read “Tiger Who”.
Singh dismissed the incident but the slight has remained fresh in Woods’s mind.
There was little to separate the game’s two leading players, and Woods and Furyk halved the foursomes match when the 10-time major winner drained a clutch five-footer at the 18th.
Australia’s Mark Hensby and South African Tim Clark eased to a 5 and 3 win over Kenny Perry and Stewart Cink before four-times World Cup winners Davis Love III and Fred Couples halved a close tussle with Argentine Angel Cabrera and New Zealander Michael Campbell.
Couples had a chance to give the US the outright lead but missed his birdie attempt from eight feet at the last to leave everything to play for in the last-day singles.
Saturday’s results:
Overall match score: US 11 Internationals 11
Justin Leonard & Scott Verplank (US) v Retief Goosen (South Africa) & Adam Scott (Australia). Won 5 and 4
Tiger Woods & Jim Furyk v Vijay Singh (Fiji) Stuart Appleby (Australia). Won 2 up.
Phil Mickelson & Chris DiMarco v Peter Lonard (Australia) & Nick O’Hern (Australia). Won 6 and 5
Davis Love III & Fred Couples v Michael Campbell (New Zealand) & Angel Cabrera (Argentina). Match halved
Kenny Perry & Stewart Cink v Mark Hensby (Australia) & Tim Clark (South Africa). Won 5 and 3
Foursomes results:
Justin Leonard & Scott Verplank v Retief Goosen (South Africa) & Adam Scott (Australia). Match halved
Phil Mickelson & Chris DiMarco v Angel Cabrera (Argentina) & Michael Campbell (New Zealand). Won 5 and 3
Tiger Woods & Jim Furyk v Vijay Singh (Fiji) & Stuart Appleby (Australia). Match halved.
Fred Funk & David Toms v Nick O’Hern (Australia) & Tim Clark (South Africa). Won 2 and 1
Davis Love III & Stewart Cink v Trevor Immelman (South Africa) & Mike Weir (Canada). Won one up.
AUSTIN AHEAD
SAN ANTONIO (Texas): Mark Wilson bogeyed his last two holes to let Woody Austin grab a one-stroke lead after the third round on Saturday in the Valero Texas Open.
Leading third round scores:
197 — Woody Austin (US) 63, 67, 67.
198 — Robert Gamez (US) 62, 68, 68; Mark Wilson (US) 65, 67, 66; Dean Wilson (US) 66, 62, 70.
199 — J.J. Henry (US) 66, 67, 66; Bob Heintz (US) 65, 65, 69; Jeff Maggert (US) 63, 66, 70; John Senden (Australia) 63, 66, 70.
201 — Steve Lowery (US) 69, 66, 66; Alex Cejka (Germany) 66, 67, 68; Olin Browne (US) 65, 65, 71.—Agencies
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