Woodland takes 1-shot lead, Tiger heads home
Woodland takes 1-shot lead, Tiger heads home
SAN DIEGO — Gary Woodland didn’t have to overpower the par 5s to take the lead at Torrey Pines.
Woodland made five birdies on another tough day of scoring on the South Course for a 2-under 70. That gave him a one-shot lead over 20-year-old Jordan Spieth (75) and Marc Leishman of Australia (72) going into the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open.
The final round won’t include Tiger Woods. In a shocking performance at a course where he has won eight times, Woods went seven straight holes with a bogey or worse and matched his worst score on American soil with a 79. Woods missed the 54-hole cut.
Woods left town without speaking to reporters and with an “MDF” next to his name, which probably should have been “OMG.”
That’s the PGA Tour’s acronym for “made the cut, did not finish.” Because more than 78 players advanced to the weekend, there was a 54-hole cut for top 70 and ties. Only one other player, club pro Michael Block, had a worse score than Woods.
“You get going south on this golf course, you can definitely put up some numbers in a hurry,” Woodland said when he heard about Woods’ score. “I don’t think he’s too concerned about it.”
A dozen players were separated by only three shots going into today, including San Diego native Pat Perez and Ryo Ishikawa of Japan.
Choi leads Bahamas LPGA Classic
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas — Na Yeon Choi shot a 7-under 66 on Saturday to take a one-stroke lead in the season-opening Bahamas LPGA Classic, chipping to a foot to set up a birdie on the par-5 18th hole.
The seventh-ranked Choi, a seven-time winner on the LPGA Tour, birdied three of the last four holes in her bogey-free round to reach 15 under on Atlantis Resort’s Ocean Club course.
Jessica Korda and Paula Creamer each eagled the 18th to reach 12 under. Korda, the second-round leader, had a 72, and Creamer shot 71. Creamer also eagled the par-5 11th, but had a triple-bogey 8 on No. 15.
Garcia beats Ilonen in playoff in Qatar
DOHA, Qatar — Spain’s Sergio Garcia won the Qatar Masters on Saturday after he birdied the third extra hole to beat Finland’s Mikko Ilonen in a playoff.
The 34-year-old Garcia made the playoff after overcoming a three-stroke deficit heading into the final round. He birdied six of the last 12 holes for a 65 and his second victory in three events.
Ilonen holed an 18-foot birdie putt at the last in a score of 66 to tie the Spaniard on 16-under.
It’s the 11th European Tour success for Garcia and 25th worldwide. He won his final event of 2013, the Asian Tour’s Thailand Golf Championship in Bangkok.
Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen had the chance to join the playoff but missed his eight-foot eagle putt on No. 18 to shoot a 68 for 15-under.
Carr, Fales help South to Senior Bowl victory
MOBILE, Ala. — Derek Carr and David Fales both threw touchdown passes and Auburn’s Dee Ford racked up two sacks in the South’s 20-10 victory over the North in the Senior Bowl on Saturday.
The showcase game for top senior NFL prospects was mostly dominated by the defenses, including big plays from two defenders from national runner-up Auburn. Ford polished off his week by twice sacking Virginia Tech’s Logan Thomas in the first half and Chris Davis had an interception.
Ford, who also had a pair of sacks in the national championship game, was named the game’s MVP. Alabama receiver Kevin Norwood caught a 24-yard touchdown pass from Fales of San Jose State and received the South’s Most Outstanding Player honors.
Wisconsin’s James White scored on a 1-yard run with 6:04 left in the game for the North’s only touchdown. He was selected the North’s MOP.
Rangers: Darvish expected to start opener
ARLINGTON, Texas — Yu Darvish will be the opening day starter for the Texas Rangers.
When asked by a fan Saturday at the team’s Fan Fest who would start the March 31 opener against Philadelphia, manager Ron Washington said “it’s obvious. It’s Darvish.”
The right-hander was 13-9 with a 2.93 ERA in 32 starts last season. He led the majors with 277 strikeouts and was second in the AL Cy Young Award voting.
By wire sources