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Taking it home Romero cards 62, blows away European Masters field
CRANS-SUR-SIERRE, Switzerland (AP) -- On a course toughened to prevent low scores, Eduardo Romero shot a tournament-best 9-under-par 62 Saturday to sprint to an eight-stroke lead in the third round of the European Masters. Reveling in the mountain atmosphere that reminds him of home in Argentina, Romero had two eagles, including one on a 145-yard (meter) pitching wedge shot into the second hole, and he capped his round with a 9-foot putt for his fifth birdie at the last hole. He is on 194, 19-under par. Darren Clarke shot 67 to hold second place on 202 with Paolo Quirici of Switzerland, after a 66 that included a front nine of 29, and Philip Price of Wales, following a 67, sharing third place on 204. "I played just fantastic. Today my concentration was completely perfect," said the 46-year-old from Cordoba, Argentina, who does yoga to improve what he feels is inadequate concentration. His round followed scores of 64 and 68 on Thursday and Friday, after which he said he was not focused enough. "I was another person today, relaxing, concentrating. I didn't see anybody on the golf course today, friends or anybody," he said. "Just focus, shot, flag." In past years players have found scoring easy here with four-round totals of 23-under or better sometimes required to win. A redesign of the greens by Seve Ballesteros was supposed to end all that. No one told Romero. He is using a prototype Callaway driver -- not the controversial ERC, which he used briefly this summer. "It's unbelievable how far it goes, sometimes 315 yards," he said. "I've had it three weeks." Romero birdied the long first hole then his first eagle came at the 440-yard second on the pitching-wedge shot. He chipped to a foot at the 319-yard seventh then eagled the 632-yard ninth with a drive, a 3-wood to 7 feet and one putt. He made three more birdies on the back nine. Romero has six European Tour victories to his credit but has not won since he took this title in 1994. "I need to win again," he said. It is his biggest lead. "Tomorrow I will try to make the same score but when you go into the final round eight strokes in front, maybe you relax," he said. "I will try to make sure I have the same concentration as today." Clarke again bemoaned his putting, saying he missed several that he should have made, including one of 3 feet. "I can't win putting like that," he said. Clarke's stable mate, Lee Westwood, plummeted from joint second overnight to a share of 13th place after a 74 that contained three double bogeys after he found three greenside bunkers. He cleared the green with his escapes from two of them and left his first attempt in the sand at the third. Quirici was disappointed to shoot 66 after his outgoing 7-under-par 29. "On the front nine I took every chance but on the back I didn't hole anything," he said. But he has given Swiss fans a home hope to cheer for. Price, second to Tiger Woods at the NEC world championship event last month, continued his steady play to join Quirici in third sport. Thomas Bjorn of Denmark, who shot 64 Friday, carded a 69 for a share of 5h place with Mathias Gronberg of Sweden. Gronberg shot 67.
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