The Daily Wrap-up: Round 3 of the CA Championship

text size

Cannon/Getty Images

Phil Mickelson shot a 69 on Saturday and will take a share of the lead into the final round of the CA Championship.

DORAL, Fla. (AP) -- Phil Mickelson wanted another chance to go head-to-head with Tiger Woods at Doral. Nick Watney gave Lefty all he could handle Saturday in the World Golf Championships-CA Championship.

RELATED LINKS

Leaderboard: Round 3 scores
Round 4 tee times
Scorecard: Phil Mickelson
Scorecard: Nick Watney
The Live Report: Round 3
Ross: Mickelson, Watney opposites
Auclair: More than a two-man battle
Woods says game's getting closer
Player interviews
Photos: Round 3

VIDEO

Round 3 highlights
Tiger's birdie from the bunker
Sirius|XM Podcast

Mickelson hit his stride on the back nine of the Blue Monster with three straight birdies and wound up with a 3-under 69. That still wasn't enough to shake Watney, who finished off a 67 with a tough par save on the 18th hole to share the 54-hole lead.

They were at 16-under 200, with no one else closer than four shots.

Mickelson had birdie putts inside 12 feet on eight consecutive holes -- including a tee shot on the par-3 13th that rolled against the flag stick and stopped a foot away -- until a wild tee shot on the 17th hole led to bogey.

Watney, who won at Torrey Pines a month ago, stayed in the game with two good bunker saves and a delicate chip to 3 feet after flirting with the water on the 18th hole.

Woods was thrilled with how he hit the ball, disgusted with his putting, and had to settle for a 68 that left him nine shots behind.

"The best I've hit it in a long time," Woods said. "Granted, I haven't played in a long time, but still."

• To read the remainder of this story, click here.

CO-LEADERS SHARE INSTRUCTOR, BUT THAT'S IT
By Helen Ross, Chief of Correspondents

DORAL, Fla. -- Butch Harmon was supposed to be in the tower an hour before Sky Sports coverage of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship began.

The legendary instructor and part-time TV commentator eventually arrived with 15 minutes to spare. But considering that two of Harmon's students, Phil Mickelson and Nick Watney, were in Saturday's final group, no one minded that he was late.

Harmon estimated he spent about 20 minutes on the range with Mickelson, who held a two-stroke lead, and another 10 with Watney. Both were obviously hitting the ball well so no major adjustments were necessary.

"I wanted to make sure they were relaxed," Harmon said. "I wanted to see if either had any anxiety, and neither one of them did."

Mickelson later had a slightly different, and more humorous, take on the interaction between the three, though.

"Nick does the 25-minute preround warm-up, so he hits all of 11 shots before he goes and plays," Mickelson said with a grin. "So he requires about 90 seconds from Butch, and I'll end up taking the other however many minutes."

Not that Mickelson necessarily needs any extra time with Harmon, though. He's been supremely confident this week -- holding at least a share of the lead after each of the first three rounds and putting that devastating good short game on display at every opportunity.

• To read the remainder of this story, click here.

Top 5 notables at CA Championship

Name Score Position Comment Sunday tee time Camilo Villegas 12 under T3 Quietly shot 3-under 69 on Saturday to move up the leaderboard two spots and remain in contention. 2:35 p.m. Jim Furyk 11 under T5 Double-bogey on par-3 fourth was the only blemish on the card as Furyk made six birdies to shoot 68. 2:15 p.m. Rory McIlroy 10 under T10 Made three crucial bogeys as he seemed to struggle with Bermuda rough around the greens in round of 72. 1:56 p.m. Padraig Harrington 8 under 18th Another uneventful day for Harrington, who made four birdies, a double bogey and a bogey in round of 71. 1:29 p.m. Tiger Woods 7 under T19 Said he hit the ball the best he has this year, but putting problems plagued him again in a round of 68. 1:20 p.m.

Saturday's Best

EASIEST HOLE TOUGHEST HOLE The par-5 first hole was easiest with a Saturday scoring average of 4.101. EAGLES: 11 BIRDIES: 50 PARS: 17 BOGEYS: 1 OTHERS: 0 The par-4 18th was toughest with a Saturday scoring average of 4.456. EAGLES: 0 BIRDIES: 3 PARS: 46 BOGEYS: 21 OTHERS: 9

SHOT OF THE DAY ROUND OF THE DAY Tiger Woods holed out for birdie from the bunker on the par-4 16th en route to a 4-under 68. Watch his shot Nick Watney birdied 4 of his first 6 holes before shooting a 67 for a second straight day. Check out his scorecard

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"I hit it great today. I hit it the best I've hit it in a long time. Granted, I haven't played in a long time, but still. I have not controlled the golf ball that well in a very long time, and that was fun. I'm just not making any putts." -- Tiger Woods on his 4-under 68 Saturday.

INSIDE THE ROPES WITH THE PGA TOUR NETWORK
PGA TOUR Network correspondent Brian Katrek offers these observations from Saturday's action. Listen to PGA TOUR Live coverage on XM 146/SIRIUS 209 or right here at PGATOUR.COM.

I don't know what Soren Hansen's favorite number is, but on Saturday it might have been 3. Hansen made a total of nine 3s and an amazing six in a row starting at the 10th hole. The run included two eagles, two birdies and two pars and could have started one hole earlier on the par-3 ninth if not for a bogey there -- missing a putt from, you guessed it, 3 feet.

Perhaps the most unnecessary golf bag embroidery in the game is on Tiger's new bag. No, not the big AT&T logo, or his name on the front of the bag, where it is for most tour players. On the shoulder strap are the big, white letters that jump off of Stevie Williams' shoulder. They spell out Tiger Woods. As if anyone didn't know who they were watching.

The par-4 16th hole is the most exciting hole at Doral. Every shot could potentially go in. Pretty good stuff for a 372-yard par 4. What makes the hole driveable for a lot of the field is the dogleg to the left. Players can cut off some distance by taking the ball over the palm trees on the left side. This also means taking it over some spectators. Some of those spectators are quite startled when the best players in the world line up right at them. With over 150 mph of ball speed, there isn't much time to duck.

THIRD-ROUND NOTEBOOK: CA CHAMPIONSHIP
By Chris Reimer, PGA TOUR Staff

DORAL, Fla. -- This is the first time there has been a tie for the third-round lead in the history of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship, as Phil Mickelson and Nick Watney are tied at 200 (-16) through 54 holes. The 16-under total through three rounds matches the lowest since the tournament moved to Doral Resort & Spa in 2007 (Geoff Ogilvy, 2008) and is just three shots off the tournament's 54-hole record, held by Tiger Woods at 19-under (2002, 2006).

• The 54-hole leader has gone on to win this event seven of the previous nine times. Those winners were Woods (2007, 2006, 2003, 2002, 1999), Ernie Els (2004) and Geoff Ogilvy (2008).

• Mickelson is the third-round leader or co-leader for the 30th time in his career. He has converted 21 of the previous 29 leads to victories (72.4 percent), most recently at the 2009 Northern Trust Open. This is Mickelson's second 54-hole lead at a World Golf Championships event (2008 Bridgestone Invitational; finished tied for fourth). Mickelson is still in search of his first career World Golf Championships Victory.

• This is the second time that Mickelson has held the third-round lead at Doral's Blue course. He led by two shots over Woods at the 2005 Ford Championship at Doral, and finished second.

• To read the remainder of this story, click here.

KODAK CHALLENGE: The first-of-its-kind competition for PGA TOUR players, The Kodak Challenge celebrates beautiful holes and memorable moments on the PGA TOUR. The Kodak Challenge offers $1 million to the winner There will be one designated Kodak Challenge Hole at 24 different PGA TOUR tournaments in 2008, with this week's featured hole the 663-yard 18th hole.

Players, who must play at least 18 of the holes during the season to be eligible, will count their lowest score relative to par on the Kodak Challenge Hole made during an official competition round. The player, with the lowest cumulative score in relation to par at the end of the challenge, wins.

• For more on the Kodak Challenge, click here.

This week's Kodak Challenge hole

HOLE: The par-5, 560-yard 8th at Doral Golf Resort and Spa LAST YEAR: The 16th played to a stroke average of 4.652, with players recording 3 eagles, 129 birdies, 158 pars, 20 bogeys and 3 double bogeys DESCRIPTION: On this par 5, the lake is very much in play for longer hitters. Numerous palm trees beyond the bunker on the right punish any bailout to that side. Many players go for the green in two, but to do so requires a long, accurate drive usually into the winter wind from the southwest.(Click here for Doral Golf Resort tour)