DiMarco falls into tie
Chris DiMarco had eight bogeys and only three birdies in the third round Saturday to drop into a tie for the lead with Rod Pampling in The International in Castle Rock, Colo., setting up what could be a wild finish.
DiMarco, the second-round leader, appeared to headed toward a runaway victory with 31 points and a nine-point lead in the modified Stableford scoring system event, but ended up losing two points in the third round with his stroke-play 77.
DiMarco’s collapse allowed 17 players to move within 10 points in a format known for huge swings of momentum — from eight points for a double eagle to minus-3 for double bogey or worse. Alex Cejka was two points back after a six-birdie round, and Tom Pernice and Bob Tway were tied for fourth with 26.
Half the field returned to the Castle Pines course early Saturday to finish the second round after three rain delays the first two days, and they were all chasing DiMarco — who opened with 14- and 17-point rounds.
Pampling took the lead on No. 13 with a birdie after DiMarco bogeyed the 12th, then DiMarco took it right back with a birdie on the next hole. Another bogey on 15 dropped DiMarco into a tie, but he was back in the lead when Pampling had a bogey on 16.
Both players birdied the par-5 17th and DiMarco lipped out a short par putt on No. 18.
Cejka started his day with 12 points through 12 holes before the second round was called on Friday, and quickly started making up ground. He finished Saturday morning with 17 points, then birdied the first hole of the third round. A bogey on the difficult par-3 fourth set Cejka back a point, but he followed with birdies on Nos. 5, 8, 12, 14 and 18 to briefly take the lead.
Pernice opened with five straight pars. He finally broke through on No. 6 with a birdie and had four more with a bogey on the ninth to wrap up an 11-point day.
Tway opened with two birdies and offset a bogey on No. 3 with another birdie at the par-3 seventh, finishing the front nine with 23 points. Tway opened the back with another birdie to get within three points of DiMarco, and had a birdie at No. 17 to offset a bogey at the 15th.
Purtzer leads 3M Championship
Tom Purtzer shot a 4-under 68 to take a two-stroke lead over Tom Kite into the final round of the Champions Tour’s 3M Championship in Blaine, Minn.
Last year in Purtzer’s first appearance at the TPC of the Twin Cities, he was tied for the lead late in the final round but hit two tee shots into the water on 17. He finished with a 74 that left him tied for 10th, four strokes behind winner Wayne Levi.
“Something like that only bothers you if you let it,” Purtzer said.
Purtzer and Kite (69) were tied through 16 holes, but Kite’s bogey and Purtzer’s birdie on the par-3 17th gave Purtzer a two-stroke lead. Both birdied the 18th, leaving Purtzer at 12-under 132.
Stupples takes three-shot lead
From a major championship across the Atlantic to a tournament near Toledo, Ohio, Karen Stupples is dominating. Stupples shot a 3-under 68 to build a three-stroke lead at 8-under 205 over Marilyn Lovander through three rounds of the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic in Sylvania, Ohio.
Wendy Ward of Edwall, Wash., is at 215 after a third-round 72, while Rathdrum, Idaho’s Tracy Hanson shot a 73 to close at 216.