Golf Roundup : Zokol Has 11 One-Putts in a 65 for 2-Shot Hawaii Lead

Canadian Richard Zokol one-putted 11 times in a seven-under-par 65 that gave him a two-shot lead Saturday in the third round of the $600,000 Hawaiian Open at Honolulu.

“The numbers are a lot better than it felt out there,” said Zokol, 29, who hasn’t finished higher than third in seven seasons on the U.S. PGA Tour.

“I wasn’t in total control. I hit a lot of bad shots, but I made the putts and that’s the difference.” said Zokol, who completed 54 holes over the windy Waialae Country Club course in 202, 14 under par.

Zokol, two shots back at the start of the day’s play, opened with an eagle and pulled away with some critical putting down the stretch.

He saved par with a 20-foot putt on the 15th, birdied the 16th from 10 feet, birdied the 17th from 25 feet and one-putted for par on the final hole.

Mark Brooks and Loren Roberts, two other non-winners, shared second at 204 going into today’s final round, but Zokol’s attention could be on a couple of more familiar names.

Tom Watson and Lanny Wadkins each had an eagle and each shot 66. They were only three back of the leader at 205.

Al Geiberger birdied three of his last six holes to pull into a tie with defending champion Chi Chi Rodriguez after three rounds of the 49th Seniors Championship at Palm Beach Gardens.

Geiberger finished with a one-over-par 73 on the windy Champion course at PGA National, while Rodriguez made his only birdie on the 17th hole and shot 71 for a 54-hole total of three-under-par 213.

Bruce Devlin, Gary Player and Orville Moody trailed the leaders by one shot at 214, and Bob Charles--the first- and second-day leader in the $350,000 tournament--fell two shots off the pace after a 78.

Strong winds were a factor for the second straight day.

Devlin’s 69 was the low score of the round and featured four birdies against one bogey. Rodriguez, meanwhile, climbed the leader board from five shots back by simply matching par.

Beth Daniel, trying to end a 2 1/2-year slump, matched par-72 in the third round of the Sarasota tournament to take a two-stroke lead into today’s final 18 holes of the $225,000 LPGA tournament at Sarasota, Fla.

Daniel, who has 14 victories and $1.3 million in earnings during a nine-year pro career, is at three-under 213 for 54 holes of the event at Bent Tree Country Club. Patty Sheehan, Jody Rosenthal and Shelley Hamlin share second place at 215.

Sheehan, who has 17 wins in eight years, also matched par and is also fighting a slump with her last victory coming in 1986.

Rosenthal shot two-over 74 to tie for second, and Hamlin, 38, had the low round Saturday, a 68.