Ogilvie makes sparkling start

Golf Digest:JOE OGILVIE made a scintillating start to his fourth round to take a share of the lead at the Waste Management Phoenix Open yesterday.

The American had birdies at the third, fourth and fifth to sit three under for the round after nine, and 13 under alongside countrymen Rickie Fowler.

Scott Piercy and overnight leader Brandt Snedeker were a shot back at 12 under par.

Snedeker bogeyed the par-four second to allow the field in. Skip Kendall also made an impressive start, carding four birdies against a single bogey to lie three under after seven for a share of fourth.

England’s Ian Poulter, who won the Accenture World Match Play last week, made a good start with birdies at four and five, but struggled to make up any more ground thereafter.

He was three shots off the lead with eight to play, alongside, among others, Ryan Moore, three under after 13.

England’s Justin Rose was enduring a nightmarish round, four over after 12 thanks in part to double bogeys at the fifth and the 11th.

Meanwhile, England’s Laura Davies shot a superb final round to claim victory at the New Zealand Women’s Open in Christchurch.

Overnight leader Sarah Kemp could not match Davies’ four-under-par round of 68 as she ended the tournament two shots behind her rival.

The Australian ended up in a share of second, with Norway’s Marianne Skarpnord and Sweden’s Pernilla Lindberg, who shot a magnificent course record round of 63.

Kemp, holding the lead going into the final day of a Tour tournament for the first time, had started the day in positive fashion with a birdie at the first, one of three on the front nine.

But bogeys at the 11th and 14th proved costly as Davies knocked in her third and fourth birdies of the day at the 12th and 16th to seal her win.

Rebecca Coakley shot a final round of three-under-par 69 to finish on one-over-par 289, while Hazel Kavanagh was a shot further back on 290 after a final round of one-under-par 71.

Hennie Otto delivered the coup de grace yesterday with a final round of five-under 67 to win the Sunshine Tour Vodacom Championship in Pretoria by nine strokes.

He finished on 28-under-par 260, one shot off the Sunshine Tour tournament record of 29-under-par, set by Mark McNulty in Swaziland in 1987, and equalled by David Frost in the 1994 SA PGA Championship.

Jbe’ Kruger was second on 269 with Adilson Da Silva and Thomas Aiken sharing fourth place.