LEMONT, Ill. — Tiger Woods started with a bogey. His best shot led to a par.
It turned out to be his best round of the year. Getting better with every shot, Woods broke the course record at Cog Hill and blew away the field Saturday in the BMW Championship with a 9-under-par 62 that gave him a seven-shot lead.
“After I got past the first hole I was doing all right,” Woods said. “It was one of those days that kind of built upon itself.”
Brandt Snedeker finished with four straight birdies for a 66 and will play with Woods for the first time today. He could probably think of better circumstances.
“I’ve got to do something spectacular,” Snedeker said, “and he’s got to maybe have a heart attack out there for me to have a chance.”
Marc Leishman had a two- shot lead when he made the turn. Could he have imagined shooting 1 over on the back nine and finding himself seven shots behind?
“You wouldn’t think so,” he said. “But like I say, it’s Tiger.”
The 62 tied the tournament record — an event that dates to 1899 — set last year by Jim Furyk at Bellerive outside St. Louis.
Kim leads by two.
Song-Hee Kim finished with a 3-under 68 for a two-shot lead over Angela Stanford at the P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship in Rogers, Ark.
Kim is at 9-under heading into today’s final round.
Stanford shot a 69. Na Yeon Choi shot a 65 for the day’s low round and was tied for third with two other players, a stroke behind Stanford.
U.S. leads Walker Cup.
The United States has taken an 8-4 lead over Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup behind the strong play of Rickie Fowler in Ardmore, Pa. The Americans are trying to win this event a third straight time.
Fowler enjoyed two lopsided victories and the Americans won three singles matches and halved four others at the Merion Golf Club. The U.S. followed its 3-1 win in alternate-shot matches in the morning by dominating the singles early.
Fowler teamed with Bud Cauley for a 6-and-5 win in foursomes and beat Sam Hutsby 7-and-6 in singles. Stiggy Hodgson had the lone singles victory for Britain-Ireland.
Four alternate-shot matches and 10 singles scheduled for today. The U.S. leads the series 33-7-1.
Hanson up by one.
Peter Hanson of Sweden leads three players by one stroke at the Mercedes-Benz Championship after shooting a 5-under 67 in the third round in Cologne, Germany.
The Associated Press
