Young Spaniard Pablo Martin had his lead halved to two shots after a third-round 71 in the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek Golf Club on Saturday.
Martin lies on 202, 14 under par for the 6,631m course designed by South African golf legend Gary Player, which borders the world famous Kruger National Park.
Hot on his heels are South African former Dunhill Championship winners Charl Schwartzel, who posted a 68, and local favorite and three-time “major” winner Ernie Els, whose 69 was drama packed.
Local Jacques Blaauw (66) and Irish pair Gareth Maybin (67) and Damien McGrane (68) are on 205, three shots off the pace entering the final round of an event co-sanctioned by the South African and European tours. Defending champion Richard Sterne of South Africa, who has been battling to solve a swing problem, could only card a level-par 72 and appears out of contention eight strokes behind Martin.
■ALLENBY TOPS OZ PGA
REUTERS, SYDNEY
Australia’s Robert Allenby continued his hot streak by capturing his fourth Australian PGA championship with a four-stroke victory yesterday.
Allenby, who took a one-stroke lead into the final round, shot a five-under 66 to post a 14-under total of 270 at the Hyatt Regency course in Queensland.
Compatriots John Senden (67) and Scott Strange (69) tied for second at 10 under.
The 38-year-old Allenby, who won the Sun City Challenge in South Africa last week, also claimed the Australian PGA title in 2000, 2001 and 2005.
Allenby was flawless yesterday, posting five birdies and while several players got to within a stroke of the lead during the final round, his third birdie of the day on the par-five 12th gave him a cushion.
■STRICKER LEADS SHAR
AFP, NAPLES, FLORIDA
Americans Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly went seven-under par in Saturday’s better-ball second round to seize a one-stroke lead after 36 holes of the 21st Shark Shootout.
Stricker, ranked third in the world, and Kelly finished on 13-under overall after the second round of the US$3 million event, which has 12 US PGA Tour duos in three different formats.
The US$750,000 top prize was to be decided after yesterday’s best-ball scramble.
Stricker and Kelly began the day level for the lead with US duo Justin Leonard and Scott Verplank, who went six-under and settled for a share of second place on 12-under with two other US pairs.
Also on 12-under were J.B. Holmes and Kenny Perry, who were 10-under on Saturday, and compatriots Dustin Johnson and Steve Flesch.
■KIM HOLDS OFF WIE
AP, DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
In-kyung Kim of South Korea held off a late charge by Michelle Wie to win the season-ending Dubai Ladies Masters by three shots on Saturday and claim her first European title.
The 13th-ranked Kim shot a 4-under 68 to total 18-under 270. Wie of the US (65) was next and Sweden’s Maria Hjorth (68) was third on 274.
Wie could have made Kim sweat on the 18th but her attempt to reach the green in two failed, the ball rolling back into the water hazard.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two