Golf Roundup : Love Stumbles but Still Shares Lead in Michigan

PGA rookie Davis Love III drew a crowd Saturday, but he didn’t seem ready to panic.

Love, gunning for his first tour victory, bogeyed the 17th hole to fall into a first-place tie with Ben Crenshaw, Tom Purtzer and Steve Pate after three rounds of the $500,000 Buick Open at Grand Blanc, Mich.

“I’m not mad, but I know I can do a lot better,” Love said after blowing a three-shot lead with a two-under-par 70. “If you don’t shoot low scores on this course, you’re backing up.

“I played pretty well. I just made mistakes on a couple of holes. I’m not real happy with it but I’m happy to still be in the lead.”

Pate shot a 65, and Crenshaw and Purtzer carded 66s to catch Love at 14-under-par 202. Gene Sauers shot his second straight 67 and was one stroke behind, as 18 players were within five shots of the lead.

Love birdied three holes on the front nine to move to 15 under, but he bogeyed the par-3 11th. He two-putted from 25 feet for a birdie on the par-5 13th but bogeyed the 14th. He had another birdie on the 16th hole, but he bogeyed the 17th.

Crenshaw, who had a triple-bogey on the fourth hole Friday, had six birdies Saturday. He sank two 25-foot putts for birdies, a pair of 12-footers and two tap-in birdies.

Pate, also looking for his first career victory, hit over the bleachers on the ninth hole for his only bogey, but made eight birdies.

Purtzer had a solid six-birdie round in which his longest putt was an 18-footer on the par-5 16th hole.

Chris Johnson shot a two-over-par 74 to take a one-shot lead over defending champion Pat Bradley and Betsy King after three rounds of the $350,000 du Maurier tournament at Toronto.

Johnson, in second place at the start of the round, is at seven-under-par 209.

Bradley, who won the title in 1982 and 1985, had the low round of the day at 67. The LPGA’s all-time leading money winner with nearly $2.1 million in earnings began the round nine shots behind front-runner Nancy Scranton, who was at 10-under 134.

Scranton plummeted from the lead with a 78, and is at 212 with Ayako Okamoto, who shot a 69, and Alice Ritz, who had a 72.

King went eight under par after eight holes only to triple-bogey the ninth and fall off the pace. She slowly made her way back before a double-bogey at the 15th, but she still managed a 71.

Bruce Crampton fired a seven-under-par 65 to tie a course record and take a one-stroke lead after two rounds in the $211,000 MONY Senior tournament at Syracuse, N.Y.

Crampton racked up six birdies and an eagle for a 72-hole total of nine-under-par 135. First-day leader Bob Erickson fell three strokes off the pace with a 71.

Orville Moody, who trailed Erickson by a stroke to start the day, shot a 68 to move into second place. Joining Erickson at three strokes back were Senior Tour rookie Butch Baird, who also shot a 68, and Ben Smith, who had a 69.

Severiano Ballesteros of Spain shot a one-under-par 71 and held a four-stroke lead after three rounds of the Dutch Open at Noordwijk, Netherlands.

Ballesteros, 29, who has won five of his last six tournaments on the European tour, had a 54-hole total of five-under 203.

Spaniards Jose Rivero and Manuel Pinedo were tied for second at 207 with Scotsman Gordon Brand.