Lehman leads the Masters
Lehman leads the Masters
AUGUSTA, Georgia (AFP): Tom Lehman bogeyed the last but kept a one-shot lead over Spain's Jose Maria Olazabal here Saturday going into the final round of the 1994 Masters golf championship.
Lehman, who has never won on the US Tour, started the day four-under-par, tied with Australian Greg Norman and American Dan Forsman and one shot behind Larry Mize.
He had five birdies and two bogeys in his three-under 69 for 209. Olazabal's 69 included two birdies, an eagle and one bogey on a day when swirling winds made life difficult on the 6,925- yard Augusta National golf course.
Mize was level with Olazabal on six-under going into 18 but bogeyed the last to drop back with a five-under 211.
Tom Kite, the 1992 US Open champion, carded a 71 to hold fourth place on 212.
But Norman, the overwhelming pre-tournament favorite, could not find a birdie all day. He opened with five pars before dropping shots at six, seven and nine, and then parred the rest of the way in for a three-over 75.
He was in a group of players six shots adrift on 215.
Greatest putt
Lehman bogeyed the dangerous par-three 12th, but birdied three of the next four to go briefly to eight-under.
At the 500-yard par-five 15th he nearly eagled but left his 15-footer at tap-in distance.
At the 16th he sank a 50-foot putt for the birdie.
"It was probably the greatest putt of my life," said Lehman, 35. "Obviously, I wasn't trying to make it. I was just trying to get it close."
At the 17th he missed a four-footer for birdie, and he left himself a seven-footer for par at the last and misread it.
Though Lehman finished tied for third last year in his first Masters, he has never led a major going into the final round.
After a brief stint on the US PGA Tour in the early 1980s he lost his card. He returned a couple of years ago and has won close to a million dollars, but has yet to claim his first tournament on the Tour.
Olazabal who won a tournament in Europe last month to continue his recovery from a lengthy slump, said he hoped to draw on his experience here three years ago, when he challenged for the lead on the final day before finishing runner-up behind champion Ian Woosnam.
Australian Ian Baker-Finch, who started the day three shots behind Mize and tied for 10th, crept up the leaderboard and was sharing fifth place with American Jim McGovern on three-under 213.
They were followed by American Tom Watson who posted a 73 for 214. Then came the bunch on 215 that included Norman, South African Ernie Els, American veteran Ray Floyd and Loren Roberts.
Selected results(USA unless stated)
209 - Tom Lehman 70-70-69 210 - Jose Maria Olazabal (Spa) 74-67-69 211 - Larry Mize 68-71-72 212 - Tom Kite 69-72-71 213 - Ian Baker-Finch (Aus) 71-71-71, Jim McGovern 72-70-71 214 - Tom Watson 70-71-73 215 - Ray Floyd 70-74-71, Loren Roberts 75-68-72, Ernie Els
(SAf) 74-67-74, Greg Norman (Aus) 70-70-75 216 - Jay Haas 72-72-72, Corey Pavin 71-72-73, Dan Forsman
74-66-76 217 - Brad Faxon 71-73-73, Chip Beck 71-71-75 218 - David Edwards 73-72-73, John Huston 72-72-74 219 - Curtis Strange 74-70-75, Russ Cochran 71-74-74, Vijay
Singh (Fiji) 70-75-74 220 - Hale Irwin 73-68-79, Bernhard Langer (Ger) 74-74-72, Lanny
Wadkins 73-74-73, Wayne Grady (Aus) 74-73-73, Ben Crenshaw
74-73-73, Fuzzy Zoeller 74-72-74, Jeff Sluman 74-75-71,
Bill Glasson 72-73-75, David Frost (SAf) 74-71-75 221 - Scott Simpson 74-74-73, Nick Price (Zim) 74-73-74, Seve
Ballesteros (Spa) 70-76-75, Mark O'Meara 75-70-76 222 - Fulton Allem (SAf) 69-77-76, Lee Janzen 75-71-76, Hajime
Meshiai (Jap 71-71-80, Craig Parry (Aus) 75-74-73, Nick
Faldo (GB) 76-73-73 223 - Howard Twitty 73-76-74, Sam Torrance (GB) 76-73-74 224 - Andrew Magee 74-74-76, Fred Funk 79-70-75 225 - Mike Standly 77-69-79 226 - Sandy Lyle (GB) 75-73-78, Ian Woosnam (GB) 76-73-77, John
Daly 76-73-77, John Cook 77-72-77