Woods rallies to remain close
Tiger Woods saved par on the last hole after hitting a 5-wood into the water Friday to finish with a 3-under-par 69, two shots behind co-leaders David Howell and Nick Dougherty after two rounds of the HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai, China.
Howell shot a bogey-free round with five birdies for a 67 and Dougherty had a 4-under 68 to head into the weekend at 12 under.
Woods and Australia’s Nick O’Hern (67) tied at 10 under, ahead of a group of five at 9 under.
Woods, who bogeyed his last hole Thursday after hitting his tee shot into a bunker and giving up a share of the first-round lead, made a charge on the back nine. He had three consecutive birdies from the 13th to the 15th to get to 11-under before he bogeyed the 16th, hitting a chip into a greenside bunker and then two-putting.
He hit a risky second shot into a lake on the right side of the 538-yard, par-5 18th at Sheshan International Golf Club. After taking a drop, Woods saved par with a long, curling putt that just dribbled into the cup to finish the round.
“I didn’t feel comfortable with my club selection at the 18th … and dumped it in the water,” Woods said. “I made a good save. To have finished 2 over for the last three holes would have left a really bad taste in the mouth.”
Dougherty was in a three-way tie with Peter O’Malley and Paul Lawrie for the overnight lead at 8 under. He also saved par on his last hole – No. 9 – holing a 20-foot putt from the edge of the green.
Lawrie, the 1999 British Open winner, shot a 75 in the second round, dropping back to 5 under.
Second-ranked Vijay Singh was two strokes behind Woods and O’Hern at 8 under, along with U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell, K.J. Choi, Thomas Bjorn, Ian Poulter and O’Malley.
PGA Tour
A different odd couple – Jason Gore and Fred Funk – is atop the leaderboard after the first round of the Franklin Templeton Shootout in Naples, Fla.
Long-hitting Gore, 31, and accurate Funk, 49, fired a 9-under 63 to take the lead at Tiburon Golf Club. Gore and Funk survived a bogey in the alternate shot format, rebounding with a birdie on No. 17 before just missing a 10-footer for birdie on the final hole.
“We probably stole a few and left a few out there,” Gore said. “That’s kind of what you have to do in alternate shot.”
The Gore-Funk team has a similar makeup to two-time defending champions Hank Kuehne, 30, one of the longest hitters on tour, and Jeff Sluman, 48, an accurate iron player.
John Huston, a late replacement for injured Scott Hoch, teamed with Kenny Perry at 8 under, and Mark O’Meara and Nick Price matched it to tie for second along with Fred Couples and Adam Scott.
Kuehne and Sluman were just 1 under at the turn, but played the back nine in 5 under to get within three shots.
LPGA Tour
U.S. Solheim Cup star Christina Kim shot her second straight 5-under 67 for a share of the second-round lead with Australia’s Rachel Hetherington in the Mitchell Company LPGA Tournament of Champions in Mobile, Ala.
Hetherington shot a 65 to match Kim at 10-under 134 on the Magnolia Grove Golf Club’s Crossings Course. Wendy Ward of Edwall, Wash., shot a 74 and is at 145.
Annika Sorenstam skipped the tournament to rest for the ADT Championship.