Appleby on his way to third straight Mercedes victory
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-08 13:56

Not even the crashing surf below can put these guys at ease, as they battle wind that makes it difficult to stand still and greens that are firm and fast, making it tough to get the ball close to the hole.

That hasn't stopped Appleby.

The Australian walked off the course wondering why he left so many shots out there, although he had few complaints about a 70, which matched Glover for the low round of the day.

The average score was 75.04, the second-toughest behind Friday's average of 75.5.
"I don't think anybody was expecting this kind of a battle the first week of the year," Mark Calcavecchia said. "I certainly wasn't. I'm exhausted."

That was after a 73, courtesy of only the second eagle of the week on a 15-foot putt on the 18th.

The other eagle was even better.

Glover, 4 over after his first four holes of the year and struggling at the start of every round, hit a 5-iron from 203 yards that bounced twice and probably would have run through the green if not for hitting the pin and dropping straight down into the cup.

It was the first ace in the eight-year history at Kapalua, and he won a Mercedes-Benz worth $83,375.

"I don't know what happened," Glover said. "I was just trying to get it up on that top level. That's a tough hole with that wind. It lined up pretty good, then it was just a matter of distance, whether a wind hit it right or not."

It put the 26-year-old into contention, just four shots behind on a course where anything can happen. Even so, Glover and everyone else in range of Appleby will need some help from the Aussie.

On grainy greens or smooth greens, breezy conditions or gale-force wind, he is proving to be the king of Kapalua. Appleby dropped only one shot Saturday, that coming on the par-3 second hole with a three-putt from 50 feet.

Appleby made seven straight pars to hold his position, then gave himself some separation on two holes. Dead into the wind on No. 13, he managed to keep his approach below the cup and holed a 12-footer for birdie, then hit another great pitch on the par-5 15th to 6 feet for birdie.

His two-putt from off the green at No. 18 gave him his third straight round under par.

The bigger story was the guys who struggle to break 80. Jason Gore, the feel-good story of 2005 with his collapse at the U.S. Open and quick turnaround to earn a promotion to the PGA Tour, doesn't feel so great this week. He shot 81, leaving him at 22 over and still searching for his first round in the 70s.

Gore is among seven players who are double digits over par.

But it also shows who's on top of their games, with three major champions among those under par, and the two-time defending champion at the top.

The only other player to win the Tournament of Champions three straight times was Gene Littler in 1955-57 when it was played at Desert Inn at Las Vegas.