The day started with four teams in realistic contention for the trophy. Spain and Australia were together on 22-under, Sweden were four strokes behind on 18-under, and Germany were a stroke further adrift on -17. There were three critical phases of play.
The first came early in the round. Although Germany and Sweden both birdied the first to pick up a quick stroke on the leaders, Germany followed with bogeys on 2 and 3, and that effectively put them six behind and brought an end to their challenge. Sweden, however, birdied 3 and 5 as well to move to 21-under. Australia dropped a stroke on 3, picked one up on 5, then dropped it again on 6. They too were on 21-under. Spain played out the first six holes in par, to remain on 22-under. From a starting position where we had two teams with a significant lead, we were now in a position where three teams were running neck and neck.
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A critical moment on the 7th. Jiminez misses a seven-footer for eagle.
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The second critical point came on the par-5 seventh. Sweden birdied, to move to 22-under. Australia's Jones pulled his drive into the left-hand rough, very much the wrong side of the fairway on a hole that doglegs to the left. Jiminez hit the centre of the fairway, and Larrazabal produced a fabulous 3-wood to give Jiminez an eagle putt of no more than seven feet. Under pressure to keep his team in touch, the left-handed Green tried to cut a wood out of the rough and round the trees, but he was too fine and the shot clipped leaves and fell well short. Jones pitched onto the green, but the ball rolled back down the slope and left Green with a long putt that he could not make. Only a par, and Australia were now one behind Sweden. They would never get back in touch.
Jiminez stepped up to his putt. An eagle to restore a two-stroke advantage over the Swedes, and give himself and his team-mate some much-needed breathing space. But he missed, and the gap remained at a single stroke.
The third and decisive phase of play came through 9, 10, 11 and 12. Sweden, now playing well ahead of Spain and Australia, birdied the par-5 ninth to join Spain on -23. Spain and Australia could only par.
Sweden played 10 to perfection, giving themselves a great birdie chance, although this was one that Stenson missed. For Spain, Larrazabal pushed his drive into the right-hand rough. As Jiminez prepared to play the shot，Larrazabal came forward to the green to check the scoreboard, where I was standing, and saw that Sweden were now level-pegging. "Did Sweden eagle 9?" he asked me. "No, they birdied," I answered. "They were already on -22."
Larrazabal looked skeptical, and a little concerned. He was even more concerned a moment later when Jiminez caught his pitch heavy and went into the bunker in front of the green. Larrazabal produced a great sand shot to leave Jiminez a tiny putt for par, but it was another missed opportunity.
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11th Hole: Somewhere in the depths of the forest Pablo Arrazabal is hacking the ball back onto the fairway.
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On now to the par5 11th, where Sweden had again birdied to go into a one-stroke lead on 24-under. 11 is a glorious hole, a piece of imaginative genius by course designer Olazabal. It is more like a ski run that a golf hole. It runs down a steep hill from tee to green, doglegging first to the right and then to the left. The first dogleg is so short that the professionals have to cut the ball over the trees to have any chance of reaching in two.
Jones found good position for Australia. Jiminez either tried for too much distance, or cut more than he meant to, and the Spanish ball crashed into the thick forest slopes on the right of the fairway. They were lucky to find it all, although find it they did.
