Mickelson shows Asian golf fans his best

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This was published 16 years ago

Mickelson shows Asian golf fans his best

By Karl Malakunas

World number two Phil Mickelson showed Asian fans his best form here Friday with a six-under 66 that put him just one shot behind second-round leader Kevin Stadler at the HSBC Champions tournament.

Mickelson's putter was white-hot as the American fired four birdies in the last five holes to finish the day at 10-under, in outright second place behind his lesser-known countryman, who played consistently all day to record a 69.

Englishman Ross Fisher, who shot a 68, and Scot Simon Yates, who matched Mickelson for the day's best round of 66, shared third place at eight-under for the tournament, three behind Stadler.

Three-time Major winner Vijay Singh of Fiji and South African Andrew McLardy were tied for fifth at seven-under.

Among the other big names in contention, reigning US Open champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina and 2007 British Open winner Irishman Padraig Harrington were in a pack of players at four-under after shooting even-par rounds of 72.

Mickelson, who has mixed as much sightseeing with golf during his rare two-week foray into Asia, was all smiles after taking advantage of a drop in the windy conditions to storm home on the back nine.

"It was a good day today... I made a few putts coming in and that feels good heading into the weekend," said Mickelson, who has won just one of his 32 professional titles outside of the United States.

Mickelson began turning a good round into a great one at the 14th, when he conjured up a birdie after hitting his drive into a fairway bunker.

He parred the next hole, then sunk a 10-foot putt for birdie on the 16th and followed that up by knocking in a 25-foot putt for another birdie on the 17th.

With his confidence up, Mickelson chipped to within a few feet on the par-four 18th and easily made the putt for his third straight birdie.

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"Those last three holes, I made some good putts," said Mickelson, who played in Singapore last week but fell off the leaderboard there with a final-day round of 79.

Stadler played earlier in the day on Friday and had to negotiate slightly windier conditions than Mickelson, but he dealt with the weather and the pressure of being joint overnight leader with few signs of nerves.

"I'm just enjoying my time here... I just like to think I'm really laid back and kind of go along with it," said Stadler, who is ranked 202 in the world.

"I'm sure if this position holds up, I'll get a little jittery over the weekend. But as of now I feel great."

Stadler and Sweden's Niclas Fasth shot rounds of eight-under on Thursday to equal the course record that is jointly held by Tiger Woods.

But while Stadler maintained his form, Fasth fell away on Friday with a round of 75 to leave him six shots off the pace.

World number four Ernie Els, who fired a 75 on Thursday, rebounded with a round of 69, although he remains 11 shots behind Stadler.

Of the Asian contingent, defending champion Yang Yong-Eun of South Korea continued his love affair with Sheshan International golf course with a round of 68 to put him at five under and give him another chance on the weekend.

The Philippines' Frankie Minoza was also on five under after a round of two-under, while Asian Tour leader Liang Wenchong of China shot a 72 to be at three-under for the tournament.

The five-million-dollar HSBC Champions tournament is Asia's richest golf event and has attracted 10 of the world's top 20 ranked players.

It is co-sanctioned by the European, Asian, Australasian and South African tours.

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