Marana, AZ (My Sportsbook) - Ernie Els won via concession over Luke Donald in Friday's third round of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, but a dream match-up against Phil Mickelson won't happen in the quarterfinals after Mickelson fell, 1-down, to Stewart Cink.
Tim Clark was the man who knocked off Tiger Woods in round two, but did not have the same magic on Friday. Rory McIlroy, the 19-year-old four seed in the Bobby Jones bracket, trounced Clark, 4&3 to get into the quarterfinals.
McIlroy will meet the highest-ranked player remaining and the 2006 champion, Geoff Ogilvy. The former U.S. Open winner, seeded second, won his battle against No. 3 Camilo Villegas, 2&1. Ogilvy, who lost in the final in 2007, is 14-2 in this competition.
While Cink/Els and McIlroy/Ogilvy are compelling contests, the possibility of an Els/Mickelson match loomed large. Unfortunately, Mickelson played some poor shots when it counted.
Mickelson, seeded second, and Cink, ranked sixth, battled on the back nine after Mickelson overcame a 3-down deficit. The two were all-square on the 15th tee when Mickelson's drive landed under a bush. He did his best to slash it out, but only advanced it a few yards.
Mickelson eventually conceded the hole to fall 1-down, but Cink stepped up on the par-three 16th tee and badly pulled his shot. Cink was not able to save par and Mickelson won that hole to square the match.
At the par-four 17th, Mickelson came up well short of the green in a dessert area. Mickelson caught all ball from the sand and knocked his third into the grandstand, but shockingly, wasn't out of the hole.
Cink landed in a bunker and blasted out to six feet. He hit a terrible putt and settled for a bogey. Mickelson had three feet to pull off a miraculous bogey and a halve of the hole, but he missed the short putt.
Cink's bogey was enough for a 1-up lead on 18. He and Mickelson drove into similar spots down the closing hole and Mickelson played a good approach 18 feet left of the stick. Cink hit a poor second that left him 50 feet straight down a ridge for his birdie.
Cink hit a beautiful lag putt to concession range. Mickelson needed to make his birdie putt to force extra holes and he could not, meaning last year's runner-up, Cink, was in the quarterfinals.
"I fought hard to get back in it and hit a couple of squirrely ones coming down the stretch," acknowledged Mickelson. "That shot out of the bunker on 17 certainly hurt me. I don't know what happened there. And the drive on 15, putting it in a bush hurt."
Cink got Els for his quarterfinal opponent and Els unfortunately won in a manner no athlete enjoys.
Els, ranked fourth in the Hogan bracket, was conceded his match by Donald, when Donald aggravated a left wrist injury on the 17th tee and informed Els on the 18th tee he could not continue.
"It felt like I stretched it a bit on the tee shot," admitted Donald, who had surgery on the wrist last summer. "After dealing with that stuff for the last few months, I didn't want to risk it. I wanted to play it safe."
Els built a 3-up lead after a 30-foot birdie putt at the ninth. Donald won 11 and 12 to get it to 1-down, but Els moved 2-up after an amazing second shot to four feet at the par-five 13th.
Els missed a six-footer to halve the 14th and was 1-up with four to play. After both players made fairly routine pars at 15 and 16, trouble loomed for Donald.
After his drive off the 17th tee, Donald appeared to experience discomfort in his left wrist. He drove into a bunker and actually hit a strong approach to 18 feet. Donald missed the putt and halved the hole to stay 1-down with one to go.
Donald took a practice swing on the 18th tee and told Els he conceded the match.
"The shot he played out of the bunker wasn't his normal shot," admitted Els. "You never want to see it, especially Luke at his age, coming into his own. He's got to look out for his health."
In the Sam Snead bracket, the unheralded Englishman Ross Fisher knocked off No. 4 Jim Furyk, 4&3. Fisher, ranked ninth, won three of the first six holes, then won the next hole every time Furyk cut it to 2-down.
Fisher will meet No. 7 Justin Leonard, a semifinalist last year. Leonard lost the 18th hole to an Oliver Wilson birdie, but, despite coming up short on the first playoff hole, got up and down for par. Wilson missed a seven-footer to extend the match.
In the Gary Player bracket, Paul Casey, the highest seed left at six, beat No. 15 Peter Hanson, 4&2. Casey will meet Sean O'Hair, the 12th-ranked player, on Saturday. O'Hair lost his first two holes, but came back and beat Ian Poulter, 2&1.
