Ochoa stumbles, Lee takes LPGA lead

A rare stumble by Lorena Ochoa resulted in Jee Young Lee taking a one-shot lead Saturday in the LPGA Championship at Havre de Grace, Md.

Lee, one of the longest hitters on the LPGA Tour, played her last four holes in four under par. Her 25-foot birdie on the last hole gave her a seven-under 65. She is at 12-under 204, a shot ahead of Maria Hjorth, who also shot 65.

What looked like smooth sailing for Ochoa and her bid for a third consecutive major took a detour when she nearly whiffed on a wedge in the rough, went eight holes before making a birdie and had to rally for an even-par 72.

Even so, she was only two shots off the pace and tied for third with Annika Sorenstam, who shot a 68.

It could have been a dream scenario at Bulle Rock with Sorenstam and Ochoa playing together in the second-to-last group. But LPGA officials, fearful of more fog that delayed the start of the third round by three hours, decided on threesomes for the final round.

That puts Sorenstam in the final group with Lee and Hjorth, her best chance to win a major since she won the U.S. Women’s Open two years ago. Sorenstam could tie the record with a fourth LPGA Championship, which would be even more meaningful because she has announced that she will retire at the end of the year.

Ochoa has won the last two majors with a big lead going into the last day, and now faces a challenge. Ten players were within five shots of the lead.

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Tim Clark got going at just the right time to break a logjam at the St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tenn., to move into the lead.

On a day that started with six players tied for the lead and 52 within six strokes of the top, Clark finished a bogey-free six-under 64 with three birdies and an eagle on his last five holes. Then he watched as his five-under 205 total held up for a two-stroke lead as he looks for his first PGA Tour victory.

Gusting winds that had made par a valuable score through the first two rounds eased enough to make club selection a bit easier, but the wind often came up or changed directions at the wrong time. With the greens remaining firm, scoring consistently remained a problem with 15 players under par through 54 holes.

Clark will play in the final round today with Trevor Immelman, who had his own opportunity to take a share of the lead but bogeyed No. 18 to finish with a 67. He was tied at 207 with Bill Haas (67), Alex Cejka (69) and two of the second-round leaders -- Marc Turnesa (70) and Gavin Coles (70).