Karrie Webb took full control in the Longs Drugs Challenge on Saturday, taming the hilly Blackhawk Country Club course with a bogey-free 6-under 66 that pushed her lead to five strokes with a round to play.
Webb birdied the final three holes on the Lakeside course to finish at 13-under 203 and send a message to her LPGA Tour rivals that the seven-time major champion from Australia is back at the top of her game.
Charlottetown's Lorie Kane (71) is tied for fourth at six strokes back.
``I just felt very at ease with my golf swing,'' said Webb, tied for the tour victory lead this season with three.
If the wind stays down on the hill-lined course, more low scores could come.
``If you have no wind, someone could shoot really low. So, I think I still have to go out there and play the way I've played this week and be aggressive on the holes that you can,'' Webb said.
Webb began the day tied for the lead with Jeong Jang at 7 under. But as Jang sputtered, Webb's clean approach shots and steady putter kept her out of trouble.
Jang shot a 74 to drop eight strokes back at 5 under.
Hamilton's Alena Sharp (72) is tied for 49th, 16 strokes back. Nancy Harvey (73) of Swift Current, Sask., is 17 shots off the lead.
Annika Sorenstam, the tour's gold standard, would have put more heat on Webb heading into the final round had it not been for a disastrous play at No. 5, a short par-5 that she double-bogeyed. Still, Sorenstam had five birdies on the day and her 69 left her somewhat in the hunt at 7 under.
Eighteen-year-old Morgan Pressel continued to wow the northern California crowd with her scoring prowess. She had seven birdies and two bogeys through 17 holes, only to give back two strokes on the closing hole.
Pressel's tee shot at No. 18 found the fairway bunker. She tried to take the ball out and over a sizable green-guarding lake, but caught her shot heavy and the ball splashed in the lake well short of the green. Pressel grasped her cap and hung her head, knowing an even lower round had escaped her.
``It's just an intimidating shot,'' Pressel said of the closing-hole blunder. ``I was shaking a little bit over that shot.''
Pressel took a double-bogey on No. 18, yet still posted a solid 69, leaving her at 8 under. Maria Hjorth (70) also was 8 under.
© The Canadian Press, 2007
