Mickelson Leads Tiger Woods Going Into 4th Round At HSBC Champions

Sports News - November 7th, 2009 - Written by Jimmy

Even though they're halfway around the World, the drive to compete and win for Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson is no different.

This week in Shanghai, China, the World's best golfers compete in the final World Golf Championships event in the HSBC Champions event. Hosted at Sheshan International GC, Woods and Mickelson are going head to head, stroke for stroke, to determine who will win this event.

In closing the third round on Saturday, there was a shakeup on the leaderboard. Over the final 5 holes, Mickelson dropped 3 birdies en route to a 67 which has put Mickelson 2 shots clear of the field, namely Tiger Woods.

While Mickelson was making his run, Tiger was only able to par out. Normally par isn't a bad score, but against the best in the World, Woods knows he'll have to do better.

"I didn't putt as well as I did the first two days," said Woods, who opened with 67-67. "And the back nine, I didn't take advantage of the par 5s and 16. I hit it in there stiff and missed that one as well. Consequently, I was three shots worse."

After a birdie on the tenth hole, Woods was clear of the field by two shots however that would be his last birdie of the day. During the time it took Woods to finish his round, Mickelson would storm to the lead, carrying momentum into Sunday.

All this leads up to the Sunday pairing of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. In the past it has been rumored that these two aren't very fond of each other. Woods doesn't have much to say about Mickelson, nor Mickelson of Woods. However when interviewed, Mickelson said "I know we are both looking forward to it. I think it will be a fun day, and we are excited to be playing in the last group here in China."

The Sunday pairing between Woods and Mickelson will be the first in 4 years. When asked about the pairing, Mickelson jokingly said that Woods has to give him one shot a side.

Not to be forgotten is another golfer, Nick Watney, who is currently tied for second with Tiger Woods. "I suppose I'm kind of the odd man out there," Watney said. "But the goal in golf is always to improve, and tomorrow will be a big step for me. Regardless of the outcome, I'll get a chance to watch these guys and see how they handle themselves, and hopefully, I can handle myself well, too."

As for the Golf Betting Odds, things are pretty standard. Mickelson, the leader, is favored to come out on top with Tiger Woods listed as a close second. Right behind them is Nick Watney. Below is a full list of the WGC odds as listed at Bodog Sportsbook.

Phil Mickelson 4/5
Tiger Woods 3/2
Nick Watney 11/1
Ryan Moore 16/1
Lee Westwood 20/1
Anthony Kim 40/1
Ernie Els 80/1
Martin Kaymer 100/1
Jyoti Randhawa 100/1
Ryo Ishikawa 125/1
Wen-Tang Lin 150/1

The final round begins at 11pm ET on Saturday night due to the time difference in China. Coverage will be on the Golf Channel and will continue into wee hours of the morning.

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