MARK CALCAVECCHIA birdied five of the last six holes at La Quinta, California yesterday, to shoot a six under par 66 and take the third round lead of the Bob Hope Classic by a stroke.
Calcavecchia finished the day at 19 under par, one shot ahead of Jay Don Blake, who had his own six under 66 at Indian Wells. The $1.5 million, 90 hole event is played over four different courses.
Five players were tied for third place at 14 under par, including 1992 Hope winner John Cook, who shot 67 at Bermuda Dunes, and the Hope runner up that year, Mark O'Meara, whose 68 also came at Bermuda Dunes.
John Daly, the 1995 British Open champion, was also at 14 under, with a 64 at Bermuda Dunes.
The Hope has played three of its four days as a pro am on a rotation of four courses that also includes Indian Ridge. Tomorrow it will be professionals only at Indian Wells.
The 66s shot by Calcavecchia and Blake were not necessarily equal. La Quinta is considered the most difficult of the four courses, Indian Wells the easiest.
Said Calcavecchia of his day at La Quinta: "I thought that three or four under would be a really good score here, and I thought that all day, I just happened to birdie five of the last six. To shoot 66 here was huge. I'm obviously ecstatic."
The birdie which started his run to the clubhouse was the most impressive of the seven Calcavecchia made yesterday.
On 13 he hit a one iron tee shot, which he described as a virtual shank, that landed two inches on the good side of the out of bounds - stake. He then hit a sweeping - hook of an eight iron over houses and through the trees to the front of the green, 30 feet from the cup and sank the putt for birdie.
"I went from making a six to a three, from a 72 to a 66, thanks to an incredibly lucky break."
Because of the different levels of difficulty of the courses, the leaderboard is regarded here as provisional until every member of the field has had a chance to play all four, which will happen today, after which the field is cut to the top 70 and ties.
. Arnold Palmer was released from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, yesterday and returned home to Florida in "excellent spirits" two days after prostate cancer surgery.
"Both (Palmer) and doctors are very pleased with the results of Wednesday's surgery," Mayo spokesman Mike O'Hara said, describing Palmer's good spirits and saying he was experiencing only "minimal discomfort."
Doctors termed Palmer's progress as "extraordinary" and released him on an outpatient basis earlier than originally expected.
They also confirmed that the cancer had been found before spreading far, improving the chances for full recovery.
