South African top seed Ernie Els beat Frenchman Jean Van de Velde on the 19th hole, on a day of enthralling contests in the third round of the world matchplay championship, in Melbourne today.
Els made a birdie putt on the 17th to make it all-square before Van de Velde sank a 20-ft birdie putt on the 18th, leaving the big South African a tricky eight-foot putt to halve the hole.
Els made the pressure putt and it was his turn to punch the air, before some marvellous recovery work getting up and down from a bunker gave him a par-four on the 19th to Van de Velde's bogey five.
In Saturday's quarter-finals, he will meet American veteran Craig Stadler, who came from three-down after 12 holes to beat Briton Andrew Colthart on the 19th hole.
Japan's Toru Taniguchi beat Australian Stuart Appleby two and one and will face countryman Shigeki Maruyama, four and three victor over Zimbabwean Mark McNulty. Tom Lehman, the world number 10 and fourth seed, went down to fellow American Brad Faxon one-up while Swede Pierre Fulke upset fifth-seeded New Zealander Michael Campbell one-up. Faxon will play Fulke.
Rank outsider Nick O'Hern of Australia, ranked 103 in the world and 63rd in the 64-man field, hammered American Dudley Hart five and four and will play American Steve Stricker, who thrashed seventh seed Justin Leonard six and five.- Reuters