Watson opens with birdie-eagle, ends with 67

DORAL, Florida – Bubba Watson hit one shot over the green and off the tower. Another shot hit a fan in the gallery. As wild as it looked at times, he never lost control of his game and he never lost the lead Saturday in the Cadillac Championship.

Watson raced off to an eagle-birdie start, then survived a few errant shots coming home on the Blue Monster for a five-under 67, giving him a three-shot lead and putting him on the verge of his first World Golf Championship.

“All in all, it was a great day,” he said.

His optimism was tempered not so much by the few guys chasing him, rather a golf course that for Watson remains an acquired taste.

“The challenge is the Blue Monster,” Watson said.

It was more of a pushover in moderate wind, with Rory McIlroy thinking about a 59 with six holes to play, Tiger Woods making an early charge up the leaderboard and a dozen players signing for a 67 or better. Watson was at 17-under 199.

Meanwhile, Juvic Pagunsan blew a three-under card with three bogeys in the last three holes, finishing with a 72 and dropping farther to 32nd place with a 212, 13 off Watson with one round left in the top-level tournament.

It was a sorry finish for the ace Filipino shotmaker who came back strong from a birdie-bogey-birdie-bogey start with three birdies in the next 10 holes. But he failed to return a six-footer for par on the par-3 15th then holed out with two more bogeys, including a second straight on the tough par-4 18th.

After an impressive 23- and 28-putt performance in the first two rounds, Pagunsan made 30 putts, getting outplayed by playing partner and Fil-Aussie Jason Day, who shot a 70 for a 210. – With AP