GOLF ROUNDUP : Beck Soars to a 68 and Trails by One

Chip Beck followed up his record-matching 59 with a 68 and lost ground in the $1.5-million Las Vegas Invitational.

“I’m happy to be just one shot back,” Beck said Saturday after completing 72 holes of the five-day, 90-hole event at 264, 24 under par.

Four others--Craig Stadler, Bruce Lietzke, D.A. Weibring and Andrew Magee--were tied for the lead at 25-under 263 with one round to go.

The overall scoring is among the lowest in the tour’s history. Only five men in the field of 75 pros failed to break par-72. The day’s scoring average was 68.2.

Stadler opened and closed his round of 66 with eagles. Magee, who capped a 62 with a birdie-birdie finish.

Lietzke hit all 18 greens for the third day in a row, shot a 67 and said he was mildly disappointed. Weibring had a 64.

Jim Gallagher shot a 61 and had a chance at the third 59 in PGA Tour history and the second in as many days.

He played the front in 29 and was 11 under for the day going to the tee on the very-reachable, par-five 18th hole at the Las Vegas Country Club. He needed an eagle to join Beck and Al Geiberger “and I’ll guarantee you I was thinking about it,” he said.

But he pushed his drive under a tree and had no chance to go for the green in two. He made par on the hole and was tied with Beck and Steve Jones at 264.

Butch Baird made two eagles en route to a six-under-par 66 and a share of the lead with Lee Trevino after two rounds at the Raley’s Senior Gold Rush at Rancho Murieta, Calif.

Baird and Trevino, who had a 70, were tied at seven-under 137 entering today’s final round in the 54-hole event on the Rancho Murieta Country Club’s 6,701-yard North Course.

South Africa defeated the top-seeded United States in the quarterfinals, then rolled over Scotland to reach the final of the Dunhill Cup at St. Andrew’s, Scotland.

South Africa will face either Wales or Sweden in today’s championship round on the Old Course. Their semifinal was suspended by darkness after two matches ended up tied at 18 holes.

Competing in an international team event for the first time in 11 years, the South Africans beat the Americans, 2-1, in the morning with one-stroke victories by John Bland and David Frost. Bland beat Curtis Strange, 68-69, and Frost edged Steve Pate, 70-71. Fred Couples accounted for the Americans’ only point with a 67-74 victory over Gary Player.