Sybase Saturday - 3rd Round and Quarterfinals

The Final Four is set and it is quite a group.  Cristie Kerr, Angela Stanford, Na Yeon Choi and Suzann Pettersen will play Sunday for the Sybase Match Play Championship.

The third round matches continued Friday's trend of advancing favorites.  Kerr, Choi, Stanford, Yani Tseng and Paula Creamer clinched their matches before reaching the 17^th tee.  Perhaps because of the quality of competition, Ai Miyazato and Suzann Pettersen had a slightly tougher time.  Inbee Park won 15 and 16 to draw within one but Ai halved 17 to win the match 2&1.  Suzann birdied 18 to defeat Stacy Lewis 1-up.  The only upset in Round Three was Sophie Gustafson's 1-up over Michelle Wie.  Michelle missed a hole-halving putt from three feet at 12 to go down one and Sophie dropped a 30-footer to halve 18 and preserve the victory.

Each of the afternoon quarterfinals seemed to follow the same plotline.  Kerr took a 3-up lead on Miyazato through the turn but Ai birdied 10 and 11 to get back in the match.  Miyazato's comeback stalled when she missed a hole-winning birdie putt from five feet at 12.  Cristie hit her approach at 13 stiff to go back 2-up and then rolled home a 25-footer at 15 to make it three.  Her six-footer to halve 16 took the match 3&2.

Stanford trailed virtually all day and was down two at the turn.  She made two big halve saves at 11 and 12 - her third at 11 rolled off the green and down the hill but still saved par and a six-footer saved 12.  Angela missed an eight-footer that would have won 13 but that just delayed things.  She dropped a 15-footer at 14 and one from six feet at 15 to square the match.  At 17 Stanford birdied from eight feet to take her first lead of the match and when Creamer's must-make 25-footer at 18 didn't, Angela had clinched her second Sybase Sunday in as many years.

Choi took a 3-up lead when she canned a 12-footer at 10.  Like Stanford before her, NYC misplayed her third at 11 but unlike Angela it cost - Choi missed from six feet to shave her lead to two.  After Na Yeon missed her 12-foot par putt at 15, Gustafson made from four to cut the margin to one.  Sophie saved a half at 17 from five feet to force the final hole, only to make a mess of it.  A poor drive set up a third from 145 yards for the Swedish Bomber and she pulled it into the left greenside bunker.  Choi laced her third to four feet so when Sophie's bunker shot didn't drop, the match was conceded 2-up.

The Pettersen-Tseng match was the wildest of the quarters.  Suzann went 2-up with three birdies over the first six holes.  Around the turn both had chances to alter the score but neither could drop any of their medium-range putts.  Pettersen was especially fighting her putter, missing hole-winners from five feet at both 9 and 12.  This gave Tseng new life, as she made a six-footer at 11 to draw within one.  Another six-footer at 13 squared the match and Yani made another from five feet to take the lead at 14.  Just as quickly though, the worm turned.  Tseng missed a six-foot par putt at 15 to square the match again and at 16 it got worse.  Yani had 12 feet to win the hole but ran it four feet by and missed the comebacker.  Pettersen's par put her back in front with only two to play.  Whoops, another plot twist - Tseng rammed home a 25-footer to win 17 and square the match again.  At the final hole, both players were within a foot of each other for their birdie attempts.  Suzann drained her eight-footer but Yani (from the very same line) missed hers left.

Yes, we could have had three of the top four seeds plus match-play virtuoso Creamer on Sunday but this foursome is no less outstanding.  You won't find a grittier pair than Kerr and Stanford in the first semifinal and both are Solheim veterans/teammates to boot.  Choi and Pettersen were Player of the Year contenders last year and while Choi isn't known for match play, she's certainly shown well at it this week.  It should be another exciting day at Hamilton Farms tomorrow.