WGC-CADILLAC CHAMPIONSHIP THIRD-ROUND TOTALS

Par 216 (3x72)
1 Dustin Johnson 69 69 65 203


T2 Luke Donald 67 72 66 205
T2 Matt Kuchar 68 69 68 205

T2 Nick Watney  67 70 68 205
T5 Francesco Molinari 68 68 70 206 
T5 Hunter Mahan 64 71 71 206 
T5 Rory McIlroy 68 69 69 206
T9 Martin Laird 67 70 70 207 
10 Padraig Harrington 68 71 68 207
T11 Anders Hansen 71 69 68 208
T11 Vijay Singh 68 72 68 208
T11 Steve Stricker 68 71 69 208
T14 Paul Casey 70 71 69 210
T14 Martin Kaymer 66 70 74 210 
T16 Bo Van Pelt 71 74 66 211
T16 Louis Oosthuizen  71 73 67 211
T16 Ryo Ishikawa  65 76 70 211
T16 D A Points  68 72 71 211
T16 Aaron Baddeley 72 66 73 211
T21 Jonathan Byrd  70 74 68 212
T21 Rickie Fowler 71 73 68 212
T21 Jhonattan Vegas  69 74 69 212
T21 Kevin Streelman  68 72 72 212
T21 Ernie Els  69 70 73 212
T26 Retief Goosen  69 76 68 213
T26 Robert Allenby 72 72 69 213
T26 Robert Karlsson 69 73 71 213
T26 Bill Haas  74 68 71 213
T30 Ryan Palmer 73 73 68 214
T30 Tiger Woods  70 74 70 214
T30 Thomas Bjorn  71 73 70 214
T30 Lee Westwood 70 74 70 214
T30 Edoardo Molinari 71 73 70 214
T30 Ryan Moore  70 74 70 214
T30 Graeme McDowell 70 73 71 214
T30 K J Choi 73 69 72 214
T38 Rory Sabbatini 74 74 67 215
T38 Zach Johnson  72 75 68 215
T38 Camilo Villegas 71 71 73 215
T38 Charley Hoffman  67 75 73 215
T42 Jim Furyk 74 71 71 216
T42 Phil Mickelson 73 71 72 216
T42 Kyung-tae Kim  73 70 73 216
T42 Miguel A. Jimenez 71 72 73 216
T46 Y E Yang 73 72 72 217
T46 Ian Poulter 73 70 74 217
T46 Thomas Aiken 68 75 74 217
T46 Charl Schwartzel 71 71 75 217
T50 Kevin Na 74 75 69 218
T50 Justin Rose 77 71 70 218
T50 Mark Wilson 72 75 71 218
T50 Marcus Fraser 69 78 71 218
T50 Jason Day 71 76 71 218
T50 S S P Chowrasia 74 72 72 218
T50 Hiroyuki Fujita 71 73 74 218
57th Peter Hanson 73 73 73 219
T58 Geoff Ogilvy 76 73 72 221
T58 Peter Senior 75 73 73 221
T58 Rhys Davies  73 76 72 221
T58 Alvaro Quiros 70 77 74 221
T58 Yuta Ikeda  74 73 74 221
T58 Ross Fisher 69 76 76 221
T58 Seung-yul Noh 72 70 79 221
65th Anthony Kim 80 74 68 222
66th Jeff Overton 75 77 73 225


T5 Adam Scott 68 70 68 206

TROY MATTESON THREE AHEAD IN US TOUR'S PUERTO RICO OPEN

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico (AP) — Troy Matteson shot a 6-under 66 on Saturday in the Puerto Rico Open to open a three-shot lead as he goes after the third US PGA Tour victory.
Fourteen players were separated by only three shots going into the third round at Trump International Golf Club. Matteson seized control by matching the best score of the day, finishing with seven birdies and a bogey to reach 16 under.
"There's so many birdies to be made out here, three shots is nothing," said Matteson, who opened with consecutive 67s. "You've got to go out there and make birdies and try to shoot another low score. And I think that's why people like this golf course. There's a lot of birdie opportunities, couple of eagle opportunities.
"We like coming to places where we can make birdies."
The 31-year-old former Georgia Tech player is in the last year of his exemption from winning the Frys.com Open at the end of the 2009 season. He also won in 2006 and has two Nationwide Tour victories.
"I think it's an advantage, but I haven't won enough out here to not be a little nervous, and most guys would be nervous," Matteson said. "Tomorrow, I'm just going to go out and try to do the same things I did the first couple days. I'm going to try to hit solid shots, give myself looks at birdie."
Hunter Haas was second after his second straight 68.
"I got off to a pretty good start," said Haas, a two-time winner last year on the Nationwide Tour. "Seems like a lot of people are making birdies on the front, and on the back it's kind of just hold on."
Michael Bradley was third at 12 under after a 68.
Major champion Angel Cabrera (69) was 10 under along with Chris Tidland (72), Brendon de Jonge (67), Brandt Jobe (67) and George McNeill (71).
Former British Open champion Stewart Cink was 5 under after a 74.

TO VIEW ALL THE THIRD-ROUND TOTALS


CLICK HERE


Price takes 2-shot lead in Senior Toshiba Classic
FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
NEWPORT BEACH, California (AP) — Nick Price followed his record-tying first round with a 3-under 68 on Saturday at Newport Beach Country Club to take a two-stroke lead in the Toshiba Classic.
The 54-year-old Price had four birdies and a bogey a day after matching the Champions Tour record with a career-best 11-under 60. Seeking his fourth victory on the 50-and-over tour, Price had a tournament-record 14-under 128 total.
"I think after a good round you tend to play a little cautiously," Price said. "I felt like I played two shots better than I did."
Mark Wiebe was second after his second straight 65.
"Nick is a great player and I'm going to have to do some magic," said Wiebe, a two-time winner on the Champions Tour. "We'll have to see what I have in my bag of tricks."
Japanese star Joe Ozaki (64) and Mark O'Meara (67) were 10 under, and defending champion Fred Couples (67) was 9 under along with Michael Allen (64) and Tom Pernice Jr. (65)
Price, five strokes ahead after the first round, played 28 holes without a bogey before dropping a stroke on the par-4 11th. He had a chance to get it back the next hole, but missed a short putt.
"I felt like I put a good stroke on it," Price said. It's hard to miss the hole from a foot and a half. I think it had to have hit something."
In the first round, Ozaki hadn't heard from wife Yoshie, who was back in Tokyo enduring the earthquake and aftershocks. She called him Friday night and assured him that she was fine. Able to relax, Ozaki rattled off seven birdies in the round, four from 20 feet or longer.
"I wasn't really nervous," Ozaki said through an interpreter. "I knew if something happened, somebody would call."
Gil Morgan had a 64, matching his age, to join Robert Thompson (66), Jeff Sluman (66) and Olin Browne (66) at 8 under. Bernard Langer, tied for second after an opening 65, had a 73 to drop into a tie for 34th at 4 under. Ian Baker-Finch struggled again in his Champions Tour debut, following an opening 74 with a 79.

TO VIEW ALL THE SCORES

CLICK HERE

GAVIN DEAR'S 68 GETS HIM PAST THE CUT WITH NOTHING TO SPARE

Perthshire's Gavin Dear covered his first nine holes - the 10th to the 18th - in four-under-par 31 on his way to a three-under 68 which enabled him tobeat the cut on the limit mark of 143 in the Abierto International Copa Antioquia in Colombia, a European Challenge Tour event.

The former Walker Cup player, pictured by Cal Carson Golf Agency, from Scone needed something special after an opening round of 75 in this weather-hit tournament.
Dear joined compatriots Craig Lee and Jack Doherty among the qualifiers, both on the 141 mark. Lee has shot 70-71, Doherty 68-73.
Jamie McLeary missed out with rounds of 73 and 74 for 147 - three over the qualifying mark.
American Will Wilcox leads by three on 11-under-par 131 after rounds of 66 and 65.
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2x71)
131 W Wilcox (USA) 66 65
134 R Gomez (Arg) 65 69, J Garrido (Col) 66 68
135 B Fritsch (Can) 69 66
136 D Vanegas (Col) 68 68, W Besseling (Ned) 70 66, P Gustafsson (Swe) 67 69, A Pinedo (Col) 66 70, G Houston (Wal) 69 67
137 M Lundberg (Swe) 71 66, E Grillo (am) (Arg) 69 68, C Russo (Fra) 71 66, A Arizabaleta (Col) 67 70, J Estevez (Arg) 68 69
138 D Vancsik (Arg) 71 67, D Barbetti (Arg) 74 64, S Rivas (Col) 67 71, P Del Grosso (Arg) 66 72, M Merizalde (Col) 68 70, N Meitinger (Ger) 72 66
139 M Baldwin (Eng) 71 68,
140 E Dominguez (Arg) 71 69, M Kieffer (Ger) 73 67, A Tadini (Ita) 68 72, A Butterfield (Eng) 69 71, H Cespedes (Par) 70 70,
141 C Lee (Sco) 70 71, B Evans (Eng) 69 72, J Doherty (Sco) 68 73, J Osmar (Col) 72 69, V Covello (USA) 69 72, S Fernandez (Arg) 72 69, M Garcia (Arg) 70 71, L Dodda (Arg) 68 73, W Murillo (Ven) 69 72, C Carranza (Arg) 72 69, E Dubois (Fra) 72 69, J Vega (am) (Col) 71 70,
142 J Habig (USA) 74 68, S Saavedra (Arg) 71 71, M Rodriguez (Arg) 72 70, C Serna (Col) 74 68, G Jackson (Eng) 70 72, N Kearney (Irl) 68 74, A Rodriguez (Arg) 71 71, P Salem (Per) 73 69, A Bernadet (Fra) 68 74, R Blaum (USA) 69 73, C Monasterio (Arg) 71 71, J Lima (Por) 73 69, D Vanegas (Col) 71 71, M Delpodio (Ita) 70 72, N Lemke (Swe) 72 70, A Snobeck (Fra) 71 71,
143 J Campillo (Esp) 73 70, H Leon (Chi) 74 69, A Canete (Arg) 74 69, A Adrian (Ven) 71 72, M Relancio (Arg) 72 71, J Palmer (Eng) 72 71, M Ford (Eng) 76 67, G Dear (Sco) 75 68, S Salem (Per) 71 72, P Archer (Eng) 70 73
MISSED THE CUT
144 B Miarka (Ger) 74 70, L Di Marino (Arg) 73 71, R Francisco (Bra) 74 70, J Clavijo (Col) 71 73, J Amaya (Col) 72 72, D Denison (Eng) 73 71, A Hadwin (Can) 70 74, D Larrazabal (Ven) 70 74, S Davis (Eng) 70 74, I Keenan (Eng) 73 71, J Heath (Eng) 73 71, M Cryer (Eng) 72 72, M Vibe-Hastrup (Den) 71 73, O Alvarez (Col) 70 74,
145 T Fleetwood (Eng) 72 73, S Bebb (Wal) 74 71, A Romero (Col) 72 73, M Southgate (Eng) 71 74, A Goldberg (USA) 76 69, J Fortlage (Par) 71 74, C Costilla (Arg) 75 70, E Gomez (Col) 73 72, R Kind (Ned) 74 71, J Echeverry (Arg) 75 70, L Giometti (Arg) 69 76, A Wagner (Arg) 74 71,
146 S Russi (Chi) 72 74, J Quesne (Fra) 74 72, R Sanz (Ven) 74 72, D Brooks (Eng) 72 74, L Posada (Col) 74 72, G Agudelo (Col) 71 75, L Marelli (Arg) 71 75, J Ocampo (Col) 74 72, G Acosta (Arg) 74 72, J Saltaleggio (Arg) 73 73,
147 F Colombo (Ita) 75 72, B Ritthammer (Ger) 71 76, O Beltran (Col) 74 73, C Ford (Eng) 73 74, L Zapata (Col) 73 74, L Kennedy (Eng) 75 72, A Ahokas (Fin) 74 73, M Palm (Swe) 71 76, N Ledesma (Arg) 70 77, J Colmenares (Col) 74 73, S Diaz (Col) 73 74, J McLeary (Sco) 73 74, A Perrino (Ita) 73 74, P Dwyer (Eng) 75 72, J Rivas (Col) 72 75,

148 J Hoyos (Col) 71 77, C Espinoza (Chi) 69 79, M Kramer (Ger) 74 74, J Clément (Sui) 72 76, R Bescansa (Esp) 72 76, M Molina (Arg) 72 76, A Mawji'S (Eng) 76 72, S Shahi (USA) 73 75, J Van Der Vaart (Ned) 77 71, J Moul (Eng) 75 73,

149 E Kofstad (Nor) 74 75, J Luna (Col) 74 75, S Acevedo (Arg) 77 72, B Gonzalez (Col) 73 76, A Jauretche (Arg) 71 78, R Gonzalez (Arg) 73 76, J Robinson (Eng) 74 75, D Altamirano (Arg) 73 76, O Villada (Col) 77 72

150 T Nakamura (Jpn) 76 74

151 R Romero (Col) 75 76, G Vergara (Col) 75 76, P Pinto (Arg) 75 76, R Serna (Col) 77 74, A Velasquez (Col) 72 79, D Tobon (Col) 74 77

152 J Perez (Col) 70 82, A Parr (Can) 76 76, M Cuartas (am) (Col) 75 77, S Tobon (am) (Col) 75 77,

153 M Hurtado (Col) 76 77, L Jensen (Den) 78 75, S Hutsby (Eng) 77 76,
154 P Vasquez (am) (Col) 74 80
155 E Isasi (Par) 76 79

156 M Gomez (Col) 76 80

157 A Rahut (Col) 75 82, R Ruiz (Col) 79 78

158 T Argonz (Arg) 79 79

160 P Arroyane (Col) 81 79

NEW DEVELOPMENT TOUR IN SOUTH AFRICA NAMED AFTER ELS

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
The Sunshine Tour has announced the launch of the Sunshine Big Easy Tour presented by Stonehage, a mini-tour dedicated to giving a wider cross section of professionals the opportunity to play in competitive pro events.
“Stonehage is absolutely delighted to be sponsoring the Sunshine Big Easy Tour,” said Stonehage chief executive officer Giuseppe Ciucci.
“Stonehage has supported the development of golf through Ernie Els and his Foundation for over ten years. We’re proud to be involved with the Big Easy Tour at its inception stage, and to have the opportunity to contribute further to the development of the game in South Africa.
"We hope this commitment will allow Stonehage to continue to assist with the discovery and development of real golfing talent under tournament conditions within South Africa, now and in years to come.”
The Big Easy Tour presented by Stonehage gets underway at Crown Mines Golf Club on March 24, which will be the first of 10 regular events, culminating in a Tour Championship at a venue to be announced at a later date.
Gareth Tindall, Commissioner of the Sunshine Tour, said: “As the Sunshine Tour continues to grow, we need to make sure we give more opportunities to develop skills in the professional game to a wider range of players, especially those who perhaps haven’t had many opportunities to excel in amateur golf ranks. The Big Easy Tour presented by Stonehage provides exactly that.”
The Tour is named after three-time Major winner Els in recognition of his continued commitment to the development of the game in South Africa.
“I commend the Sunshine Tour on this initiative to provide competitive playing opportunities for our up-and-coming professionals and I am very honoured that the Tour has asked me to put my name to the new mini Tour,” said Els.
“The Big Easy Tour will help our young nation’s talent mature, develop their playing skills and take the next big step towards full Tour status. It’s a great format and I’m sure it will prove popular. I’m also very excited that Stonehage, a company with which I have had a long association, has decided to sponsor the Big Easy Tour. They are a loyal partner of the Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation, and this extension of their involvement in South African golf is wonderful to see.”
Professional golfers who received their cards at the Sunshine Tour 2011 Qualifying School played last year, and the top 30 at the Vusi Ngubeni Strokeplay played in January, are eligible to play on the Tour, as are those who finished from 71st to 150th on the 2010 Sunshine Tour Order of Merit.
Each tournament will be played over two rounds, and initially all events will be in the Gauteng area, where the majority of golfers at whom the series is aimed live. That way, travel and accommodation costs will be alleviated for those players.
Each event will have R100,000 in prize money, with the Big Easy Tour Championship carrying a purse of R250,000.

SANDY LYLE LEADS BY TWO IN CHASE FOR FIRST SENIOR TITLE

By STEVE TODD
European Senior Tour Press Officer
Sandy Lyle will take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the ISPS Handa Senior World Championship presented by Mission Hills, China as the Scot looks to end his three-year wait for a maiden European Senior Tour victory.
The two-time Major Champion carded a second round 66 over the World Cup Course at Mission Hills to move to ten under par 134 for the tournament, with overnight leader Peter Fowler of Australia second on eight under par following a 69.
A magnificent scoring run in the middle of his round ignited Lyle’s challenge, as the former Open and Masters champion looks to secure a first tournament victory in 19 years, since he won the last of his 18 European Tour titles in the 1992 Volvo Masters.

The 53-year-old, whose long hitting is suited to the Jack Nicklaus-designed course in China, carded three consecutive birdies from the sixth hole before eagling the ninth when he holed his 135yard wedge approach shot.

Sandy, pictured right by courtesy of Getty Images (c), added further birdies on the 11th and 16th holes before dropping his only shot of the day with a closing bogey on the 18th.

“The three birdies and then the eagle at nine really changed the game,” said Lyle. “That gave me an extra confidence boost.

“I haven’t won on the Senior Tour so a win would be very nice. Plus it’s been nearly 20 years since I last won a tournament.

“There’s no game plan tomorrow just to put numbers on the board and get off to a good start. I haven’t played with Peter Fowler in a long time so that will be nice too.

“I’ve heard so much about Mission Hills. It’s nice to finally get a chance to see what it’s all about. It’s definitely spectacular. The World Cup Course is a very, very fine golf course. It is a great test of your skills, testing on length, undulating greens, water and sand. It is a fantastic golf course.”

Former Ryder Cup player Lyle currently leads the Senior Tour Order of Merit after finishing second in the Handa Australian Senior Open – his best finish since joining the Senior Tour in 2008 - and tied fifth in the Handa Cup Senior Masters in Japan.

His closest rival in China is Fowler, who is also chasing a maiden Senior Tour win after a recent upturn in his form following an injury plagued two years.

The 51 year old former BMW International Open winner carded five birdies in his round of 69 but blotted his scorecard with a double bogey five on the par three fifth hole.

Paraguay’s Angel Franco, another played hoping to become a first time Senior Tour winner after seven runners up finishes, is third on six under par after also signing for a 69.

Round of the day belonged to Zimbabwe’s Tony Johnstone who fired nine birdies in his 64 to move to fourth place on five under par.

It also proved a good day for the Senior Tour’s two former Ryder Cup Captains, with Sam Torrance posting a 69 to move to a share of fifth place with Gary Wolstenholme on four under par, and Ian Woosnam a shot further back after a 68.

Woosnam is one of five players tied for seventh place on three under par, along with the 2010 Order of Merit winner Boonchu Ruangkit of Thailand.

FIRST-ROUND SCORES
Par 144 (2x72)

134 S Lyle (Sco) 68 66

136 P Fowler (Aus) 67 69

138 A Franco (Par) 69 69

139 T Johnstone (Zim) 75 64

140 S Torrance (Sco) 71 69, G Wolstenholme (Eng) 70 70,

141 J Quiros (Esp) 70 71, G Ralph (Eng) 69 72, F Mann (Sco) 69 72, B Ruangkit (Tha) 72 69, I Woosnam (Wal) 73 68,

142 N Ratcliffe (Aus) 68 74, J Rivero (Esp) 71 71, M Cunning (USA) 71 71, B Lincoln (RSA) 74 68,

143 D Russell (Eng) 68 75, M Farry (Fra) 71 72, G Manson (Aut) 72 71, B Longmuir (Sco) 71 72,

144 L Carbonetti (Arg) 72 72, H Carbonetti (Arg) 69 75, S Van Vuuren (RSA) 73 71, B Lane (Eng) 71 73,

145 J Stuart (USA) 74 71, P Dahlberg (Swe) 75 70, M Moreno (Esp) 73 72, R Davis (Aus) 73 72, M Belsham (Eng) 71 74, G Brand (Eng) 72 73, B Cameron (Eng) 72 73, A Sherborne (Eng) 73 72,

146 N Job (Eng) 73 73, T Price (Aus) 70 76, M Harwood (Aus) 75 71, W Smith (Aus) 70 76, D Cambridge (Jam) 74 72, D Merriman (Aus) 75 71,

147 J Bruner (USA) 74 73, F Illouz (Fra) 73 74, L Stephen (Aus) 74 73, C Mason (Eng) 73 74, G Banister (Aus) 73 74,

148 K Tomori (Jpn) 74 74, J Gould (Eng) 73 75, J Sallat (Fra) 77 71, W Grady (Aus) 74 74, D O'Sullivan (Irl) 74 74,

149 B Smit (RSA) 74 75, J Heggarty (Nir) 75 74, D Durnian (Eng) 77 72, M Briggs (Eng) 73 76, S Owen (Nzl) 75 74,

150 M Kierstenson (Eng) 76 74, K Spurgeon (Eng) 73 77, A Sowa (Arg) 75 75, T Charnley (Eng) 77 73,

151 J Chillas (Sco) 74 77, M Piñero (Esp) 77 74, G Cali (Ita) 78 73, B Hardwick (Can) 77 74, T Burgoyne (Sco) 76 75,

153 M Miller (Sco) 75 78,

154 S Cipa (Eng) 79 75, D Hospital (Esp) 74 80, C Williams (RSA) 79 75,

155 T Gale (Aus) 77 78, S Bennett (Eng) 81 74,

156 G Davies (Wal) 80 76,

157 R Metherell (Aus) 77 80,

158 T Hassan (am) (Pak) 78 80, H Lian-Sheng (Chn) 78 80,

Withdrew:  A Garrido (Spain).

NICK PRICE SHOOTS A 60 TO LEAD US SENIORS BY FIVE SHOTS

Nick Price fired an 11-under-par 60 on Friday to take a five-shot lead in the opening round of the Toshiba Classic on the US Champions (Seniors) Tour at Newport Beach Country Club in California.
He equalled the 2004 course record set by Tom Purtzer, and he also matched the all-time Champions Tour record which was set by Isao Aoki in 1997.
It was his best-ever round on the tour, too. “I shot a couple of 61s which were 11-under, which is basically the same what I shot today,” he said. “60 just sounds better to me.”
His seven birdies and two eagles took him five shots clear of Bernard Langer, Mark O’Meara, Mark Wiebe and Brad Bryant.
There were three players on 66, including Fred Couples, and then David Frost shared ninth with five other players on four-under-par 67.
“There was a flash through my mind when I eagled 15, I sort of thought to myself, if I birdie the last three holes I can break 60 which I've never done before,” said Price.
His round followed a good start to last week’s Honda Classic on the PGA Tour. “Last week was, you know, tiptoeing through a mine field, because it was really, really hard for me anyway, and for a lot of the other guys.
“I hit a lot of long irons, a long golf course, very, very strong winds. Maybe that tightened my game up for me for this week.
“But I think more than anything else, having played last week and played for four rounds and not having had two weeks off like most of the other guys have had, that’s helped,” he said.
But he won’t be abandoning the Champions Tour for more events on the US PGA Tour: “My priority is to play this tour. I probably won’t skip any of our events to play the PGA Tour. I will fill in the weeks that I’m not playing on this tour where I think it’s relevant,” he said.
FIRST-ROUND LEADERS
Par 71
Players from US unless stated
60 Nick Price (Zimbabwe).
65 Bernhard Langer (Germany), Mark O'Meara, Brad Bryant.
66 David Peoples, Fred Couples, Andy Bean.
Selected score:
74 Ian Baker-Finch (Australia).

CHECK OUT ALL THE SCORES ON THE US PGA TOUR WEBSITE

CLICK HERE

MARTIN KAYMER IS PLAYING LIKE A WORLD NO 1

FROM THE GOLF.COM WEBSITE
DORAL, Florida (AP) — Martin Kaymer is the new No. 1 in golf and getting the same kind of respect another No. 1 once did.
Never mind that Hunter Mahan has a one-shot lead going into the weekend of the Cadillac Championship after stumbling with a pair of bogeys in the final hour of his second round on Friday for a 1-under 71.
It was the guy right behind him who made some players take notice.
Kaymer opened his season with an eight-shot win in Abu Dhabi. He went to the top of the ranking by reaching the final of the WGC Match Play Championship in Arizona. And in his first start as No. 1, the German eased his way to a bogey-free 70 to get within one shot of the lead halfway through this World Golf Championship at the Blue Monster, Doral.
"That's why he's world No. 1," Rory McIlroy said.
McIlroy had a 69, and was two shots out of the lead. That's not what concerned him.
"Even though Hunter is a couple of shots ahead of me, to give Martin a stroke lead is going to be pretty tough to sort of keep up with him," McIlroy said.
The 26-year-old "Germanator" is starting to establish a presence on the leaderboard, much like Tiger Woods did for so many years
For now, Woods is having to settle for middle of the pack.
Mahan, who has played beautifully for two days on the Blue Monster and was at 9-under 135, had a four-shot lead on the back nine until his long three-putt bogey on the 14th and a poor tee shot that led to bogey on the 16th. That cost him a cushion, but not the lead.
He will be in the final group with Kaymer. Italy's Francesco Molinari, going for his second World Golf Championship, had a 68 and joined Kaymer at 8 under.
"I hit a lot of good shots, just didn't finish as strong as I would have hoped," Mahan said. "But I'm pretty happy with where I am."
Mahan's finish brought so many others into the mix.
McIlroy, Matt Kuchar (69) and Nick Watney (70) were among those two shots behind, while Dustin Johnson (69) and Adam Scott (70) were another stroke back.
Woods, a three-time winner at Doral, was not among them. Neither was Phil Mickelson.
Woods again struggled with his putter, missing four birdie putts inside 10 feet and looking bad at the end. A pair of 6-foot birdie attempts at the 16th and 18th holes never had much of a chance and he wound up with a 74, nine shots behind.
Even so, the lasting image of Woods will be a pair of tee shots.
He hit a smother hook with the driver on the second hole, which travelled only 122 yards - about the same distance he typically hits a sand wedge. Then came a pop-up on the 14th hole and a 188-yard drive.
"It's pretty tough not to giggle," U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell said about Woods' tee shot on No. 2. "We all hit bad shots. Hit a couple of those in my time. The guy is working on his golf swing, and every now and again, you have a few weird ones in there."
When someone suggested he didn't appear to be having fun, Woods didn't look like he was having fun answering the question.
"You're not going to have a lot of fun when you're nine back," he said. "I don't know if a lot of people are very happy with that."
Mickelson dropped three shots when he returned to finish the storm-delayed first round, including two shots in the water on the par-5 eighth for a double bogey that led to 73. He was slightly better in the second round with a 71.
McDowell called a penalty on himself when he noticed the ball move during his putting stroke on the ninth. That gave him a 73
Woods and Mickelson will be paired Saturday, the first time they have ever been in the same group for three straight rounds. They could be just a warmup act, however, being so far out of contention.
Mahan had a chance to beat Kaymer at the Match Play until losing a late lead.
"It's quite impressive, his run," Mahan said. "He seems mentally tough and I think that's what separates him. And he's a great putter. But he's playing great. He's actually winning, and that's what sets the good players and great players apart."
A dozen players were separated by four shots going into the weekend, including defending champion Ernie Els and Padraig Harrington.
Kaymer had to play eight holes in surprisingly cold weather - so cold that Mahan donned a ski cap in Miami - and shot 66. He was steady in the afternoon, never a serious threat to chase down Mahan, just hanging around.
It was the work of a No. 1 player, and one that doesn't figure to relinquish it any time soon.
"Especially after the PGA Championship, a lot of people thought that this may be the end of my career, especially in Germany," he said. "For me, it was very important that I keep winning. Of course, I'm happy and I'm very satisfied. But it's not the final satisfaction."
It was tough for Ryo Ishikawa, Yuta Ikeda or Hiroyuki Fujita to take much satisfaction out of whatever they did. The three Japanese players in the field struggled with news of the devastating earthquake at home.
Ishikawa at least was able to contact his family just northwest of Tokyo before resuming his first round in the morning, and he shot a 65 to trail Mahan by one. The afternoon was a struggle, mostly because of the wind, and Ishikawa shot 76.
"I received a communication from my father, and the message was, 'Focus on your golf, we are fine, do what you need to do,'" Ishikawa said. For the second round, he said, "It was simply that the Blue Monster decided to be what it's known to be."
SCROLL DOWN FOR AN EARLIER REPORT ABOUT MARTIN LAIRD

AND A SCOREBOARD CHECK