WEST PALM BEACH - Annika Sorenstam never had to work so hard to gain so little.
Her three-shot lead was gone in five holes. Her roller-coaster round Saturday took a frightening turn when she missed a 3-foot par putt on the 11th hole to lose the lead.
"When you're 3 over par and you think of what's left ... those are hard holes," Sorenstam said. "I tried to remember the last time I was 3 over in a round."
She never had to figure out the answer.
Sorenstam made birdie on two of the toughest holes at Trump International and got another with a 4-wood into the par-5 15th green. It helped her finish par 72 and take a one-shot lead over Jennifer Rosales and Cristie Kerr in the LPGA's season-ending ADT Championship.
"I'm worn out because I fought hard," Sorenstam said. "I have a chance tomorrow, and that's all I wanted."
Sorenstam, who has not shot over par since June, was 10-under 206 and still in good shape - but barely - to win her eighth tournament of the year.
Rosales (69) and Kerr (70) each played without bogey on a breezy, warm day. No one else was closer than five shots off the lead.
DUNLOP PHOENIX: Tiger Woods closed in on his first title since February, shooting 5-under 65 to open a 10-stroke lead in Miyazaki, Japan. Woods birdied two of the first three holes and added three more. He was 13-under 197. Woods' lead tied his largest margin after 54 holes. He had a 10-shot lead at the 2000 U.S. Open.
UBS CUP: Fred Couples and Tom Watson led the comeback, and the American team took a 61/2-51/2 lead over an international team after best-ball competition in Kiawah Island, S.C. Trailing by one entering the second day of the Ryder Cup-style competition for players 40 and older, the Americans won three matches, halved two and lost one. The event ends today with 12 singles matches.
WORLD CUP: Spain took the lead in the third round in Seville, with Sergio Garcia and Miguel Angel Jimenez combining for 11-under 61 to pull one shot ahead of England. The U.S. team of Scott Verplank and Bob Tway shot 64 and was tied with Ireland (64), Sweden (64) and defending champion South Africa (64) three shots back.
