Lancaster moves two clear

Neal Lancaster was never in serious trouble Saturday as he posted a 5-under 67 on a toasty afternoon at Angus Glen, giving him a two-stroke lead over Greg Chalmers of Australia at the Canadian Open and his first 54-hole lead on the PGA Tour in six years.

Nine other players had a better score, but Lancaster might have had the best round. He played in the final group, when the greens were firm and bumpy, and hit the ball so well that he had six other birdie chances inside 12 feet.

Instead of celebrating his position - 16-under 200 and his first third-round lead since the 1996 Nissan Open - he was kicking himself. Lancaster ended his round by missing birdie putts of 12 and 8 feet on the final two holes.

"I could have put a big gap between me and second place," he said. "I was 2-under par on the back nine, and felt like I was over par."

Chalmers chipped in from 15 feet for eagle on No. 7, then rolled in a 30-foot eagle putt on No. 9 in shooting a 65 to earn a spot in the final group for the first time.

Suddenly, Chalmers isn't worried about trying to keep his card - he's 115th on the PGA Tour money list as the season winds down. Sunday will be about winning.

"If you take care of one problem, it fixes the other," Chalmers said.

Billy Andrade, who started the third round tied with Lancaster, lost two balls in the hazard on the front nine and finished with a 70. He was in the group at 203 that included Vijay Singh (66), Justin Leonard (66), Steve Flesch (65) and Grant Waite (69).

"I'll probably have to shoot 5 under again to win it," Lancaster said. "I don't think I can shoot 3 under and win."

Given that Angus Glen has given up rounds of at least 65 all three days, Lancaster's margin is hardly safe. Eleven players were within six strokes of his lead.

That includes Ian Leggatt, the nation's best hope of being the first Canadian to win his national open since Pat Fletcher in 1954.

Karl Keffer was the last Canadian-born winner in 1914.

Leggatt had the biggest gallery of the day, but disappointed them by dropping four shots on his first 13 holes. He followed that with a birdie-birdie-eagle stretch that brought him back to even-par 72, and at 206 still in the hunt.

Lancaster shot a 77 in the final round at Riviera the last time he had a 54-hole lead, although that kind of stuff doesn't weigh on him in the least. The country boy from Smithfield, North Carolina, (population 8,000) is just out to play golf and see where he winds up.

"If it's not good enough, I'll try again next week," he said. "The thing is, I've got to believe I can do it. Today was a big step."

He's been plenty good so far. Lancaster has made only one bogey all week at Angus Glen, and Saturday was about as easy as a 67 can get.

He rolled in a 15-foot putt on the opening hole, made a 12-footer on No. 11 and picked his other birdies on the par 5s, getting up-and-down from around the green. He would have been perfect on the long holes except for missing a 6-footer on No. 14. He also left a 15-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th right in the throat.

The back nine was about the only time Lancaster got too serious. He knew he was striking the ball well, and he knew he had a chance to open up a big lead.

"My caddie got so wound up I had to calm him down," Lancaster said. "When I made that putt on No. 11, he said, 'Let me get it out of the cup so everyone will see me on TV."'

Lancaster will get plenty of air time on Sunday when he goes after his second tour victory, and the first one that goes the distance.

His only other victory was at the '94 Byron Nelson Classic, which was cut short to 36 holes because of rain. Lancaster won in a playoff over five others.

Email this page to a friend | Return to top of page