A nine-time winner on the European Tour, Alex Noren of Sweden gave himself a chance to make his mark in America with a 3-under 69 on Saturday for a one-shot lead going into the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego.
Noren finished strong, unlike some of his top challengers. He drilled his second shot over the water on the par-5 18th at Torrey Pines to the back fringe, setting up a simple two-putt birdie.
Ryan Palmer had a chance to tie him for the lead until he came out of a wedge and missed the green to the right. He settled for par and a 73.
Jon Rahm, the defending champion who can go to No. 1 in the world with a victory this week, was poised to get within one shot, or possibly tie for the lead. From the middle of the fairway, Rahm’s 4-iron came up short and into the water. After a penalty drop, his wedge bounced hard and through the green. His chip came out soft, and he missed a 6-foot putt to make double bogey. That left him four shots out of the lead.
Tiger Woods was superb with his short game for the second straight day, and it’s a good thing. Woods was so wild off the tee that he hit only one fairway on the back nine and three fairways for the round but still managed to shoot 70 and was eight shots behind.
“It’s not the driver, it’s my swing,” said Woods, who has hit only six fairways since Thursday. “Some of my go-to shots aren’t there. ... The only thing I have is my short game and my heart, and that got me through today.”
Noren, who played his college golf at Oklahoma State, cracked the top 10 in the world at the end of 2016 after a four-victory season and now is at No. 19. This is his first year playing with a PGA Tour card.
“All I’m trying to do is play some good golf, and my goal is to win a tournament,” Noren said. “I don’t care too much if they know me or not. It’s quite nice if they don’t know me. But they’re very nice to me.”
Noren will be leading a big pack of contenders. Two dozen players were separated by five shots, a group that includes Jason Day, the former No. 1 player in the world who hasn’t won in 20 months. Day was tied for the lead briefly until dropping three shots. He had a 71 and was three behind.
LPGA: Brooke Henderson birdied the par-5 18th hole and had a one-stroke lead over top-ranked Shanshan Feng in the suspended second round of the wind-swept Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic on Paradise Island. Henderson shot an even-par 73 to get to 5 under overall after two rounds and three days at the Ocean Club Golf Course in the event cut to 54 holes after wind wiped out play most of Friday.
European: Rory McIlroy shot 5-under for the seven holes he played to take a two-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Dubai Desert Classic. The four-time major champion was 3-under par for his round after 11 holes when play was suspended Friday after heavy morning fog delayed the start of the second round. But in perfect conditions Saturday, the 28-year-old finished a great round with three straight birdies for a 64 and a two-round total of 15-under 129. Jamie Donaldson, who shot 69, was in second place.