Scott Has Game, Look of a Leader

Adam Scott has been called a clone of Tiger Woods because their swings look so much alike, they both were taught by Butch Harmon and they often play practice rounds together at the majors.

Both finished with a burst of birdies Saturday at the Deutsche Bank Classic at Norton, Mass., although that’s where the similarities end.

Scott was eight under par over his final 10 holes to take the lead. Woods made six birdies in nine holes to avoid missing the cut.

“I think I got the most out of my game,” Scott said after his nine-under 62 set the course record on the 14-month-old TPC of Boston.

He was at 11-under 131 and had a two-shot lead over Vijay Singh.

The 23-year-old Aussie started his run with a four-foot eagle putt on No. 18, and quickly surged past a foreign-dominated leaderboard to take the 36-hole lead for the first time in a PGA Tour event.

Singh birdied four consecutive holes early in his round to reach 10 under, bogeyed the par-three 11th and closed with seven pars for a 68.

Woods was thankful to stick around for the final two days of the $5-million tournament that benefits his foundation.

He made three bogeys in a row and was three over par -- three shots over the cut line -- when he responded with six birdies in nine holes to extend his streak to 111 consecutive cuts made on the PGA Tour.

“It wasn’t looking very good,” Woods said. “I just hit bad shot after bad shot. I figured if I got back to even par, I’d be pretty good. And I did a couple better than that.” Woods finished with a two-under 69 and was eight shots back.

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Jim Ahern birdied three of the final four holes for a four-under 68 to take a one-stroke lead after the third round of Jeld-Wen Tradition, the final major on the Champions Tour.

Ahern was at 14-under 202 after 54 holes heading into today’s final round at the Reserve Vineyards and Golf Club at Aloha, Ore.

Second-round leader Tom Watson faltered with four bogeys to finish a stroke behind at 13 under with a one-over 73. Tom Kite and Morris Hatalsky each shot five-under 67s to join Watson at 13 under.

Jack Nicklaus finished with a four-under 68 to stay in contention at nine-under 207. It was the ninth and final tour event this season for Nicklaus, who has won the Tradition four times.

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Candie Kung played just well enough to keep her lead as Laura Davies and others closed the gap heading into the final round of the LPGA State Farm Classic at Springfield, Ill.

After leading by four strokes through two rounds, Kung built her lead to five before stumbling. She finished the day with a one-under 71 for a one-shot lead over Davies, a 20-time tour winner.

Kung started uncharacteristically strong, moving to 15 under through her fourth hole and taking a five-stroke lead. But she shot one over the rest of the day, while Davies shot a six-under 66 and moved closer heading into today’s final round.