GOLF ROUNDUP : Hoch, Norman, Strange Tie for Bay Hill Lead

Greg Norman, Curtis Strange and Scott Hoch took different routes Saturday to the same place--a tie for the lead after three rounds of the Bay Hill Invitational at Orlando, Fla.

Hoch, the second-round leader by one stroke, shot a two-under-par 70 but dropped back into a tie with a double-bogey on the 17th hole. Norman, who had a 68 on Friday, matched the day’s best round with a 65, and Strange improved by four shots to a 68.

Hoch was coasting along at 11 under going into the par-three, 219-yard 17th. Even his tender left hand, recovering from tendinitis, was feeling all right, when disaster hit.

On a hole on which getting over the water generally isn’t difficult, Hoch plunked his 2-iron shot short of the green into the water.

He double-bogeyed, allowing Strange and Norman to start talking about how they could win.

“I knew I had to shoot in the 60s,” said Norman, who recovered from an opening-round 74. “And it will have to be in the 60s to win.”

Said Strange: “I didn’t play as well as the last couple of days, but a 68 at Bay Hill is not bad. If I hole a few putts, I’ll be satisfied. It could be tough out there (today).”

Norman tied South Africa’s Fulton Allem for the day’s best round with seven birdies and no bogeys. Allem had a hole in one on the 192-yard second hole and was in a four-way tie at 208 with Larry Mize (67), Robert Gamez (68) and Craig Parry (69).

Pat Bradley shot a five-under-par 68 on her 39th birthday to take a one-shot lead after three rounds of the Turquoise Classic at Phoenix and move closer to becoming the LPGA’s first $3-million winner.

Bradley, who is $15,232 shy of $3 million and needs to finish sixth or better to reach the mark, was at 10-under-par 209, one shot ahead of Ayako Okamoto, who had a 69.

Betsy King (70) is tied for third at 211 with Kristi Albers (71).

Hsieh Man-nan of Taiwan shot a two-under-par 70 to tie Dave Hill and Hsu Chi-san of Taiwan at 143 for the lead after two rounds of the $400,000 Grandslam Championship at Kurimotomachi, Japan.

Hsu had a 76, Hill a 74.

Hideo Jibiki of Japan was third at 144 after a 75, with Kesahiko Uchida of Japan (73), Miller Barber (74), Bob Charles of New Zealand (75), Lee Trevino (76) and Larry Mowry (79) tied at 145.