Funk Rallies to Lead by One

Fred Funk needed a late rally on a sticky, steamy Saturday to take a one-stroke lead into the final round of the Buick Championship at TPC at River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn.

With 20 players within four strokes of the lead, the 48-year-old Ryder Cup rookie will have to hold off a gang of players today to pick up his first win in six years.

“It was a pretty good struggle out there today,� Funk said. “What I think is going to happen tomorrow is by the time I tee off, somebody is already going to be in double figures. You’ve just got to ignore that and go play.�

The second-round co-leader, Funk shot a one-under-par 69 and is nine under for the tournament. He was just ahead of Tom Byrum and first-round leader Corey Pavin. Joey Sindelar and Hunter Mahan were two strokes back, and nine others, including Skip Kendall and Hank Kuehne, were at six under.

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Vicente Fernandez birdied the final hole for a six-under 66 and a share of the third-round lead with Oregon native Peter Jacobsen at the Tradition at Reserve Vineyards and Golf Club in Aloha, Ore.

Fernandez and Jacobsen are 12 under par in the Champions Tour’s final major of the year. Jacobsen, the second-round leader, shot a 69.

Allen Doyle wrapped up the third round with an eagle and three consecutive birdies for a 64 to reach 11 under.

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Grace Park closed with an eagle and two birdies for a seven-under 65 and a one-stroke lead after three rounds of the Wachovia LPGA Classic at Berkleigh Country Club in Kutztown, Pa.

Park’s 17-under 199 is a 54-hole record at the event.

Second-round leader Jill McGill is one stroke behind after a two-under 70, and Soo-Yun Kang is another shot back at 201 following a round of 68. Laura Diaz is three strokes off the pace.

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Thomas Levet shot a nine-under 63 at Munich Nord Eichenreid and shared the third-round lead with Miguel Angel Jimenez at the BMW Open, where a half-dozen players are vying for European Ryder Cup berths.

Jimenez, a Spaniard, had a 67 and was at 15-under 201 with Levet, a Frenchman who missed the course record by a stroke. Two strokes behind were South Africa’s Retief Goosen and Austria’s Markus Brier, who shot 68 and 67, respectively.

Five contenders for the team’s four automatic berths remain on the leaderboard. Others are looking to impress European captain Bernhard Langer for his two at-large choices for the showdown with the U.S. team at Michigan’s Oakland Hills on Sept. 17-19.