Golf Roundup : Two Eagles Help Palmer Shoot 67 for 4-Shot Lead

Arnold Palmer moved a step closer to his first victory in 28 months Saturday, knocking in a pair of eagles while shooting a five-under-par 67 that gave him a four-stroke lead in the second round of the $250,000 Senior Challenge golf tournament at Roswell, Ga.

Palmer, who shot an opening-round 66, was at 133 entering today’s final round for the $37,500 first prize.

Gary Player tied the Horseshoe Bend Country Club course record with a 65 and moved into a second-place tie at 137 with Larry Mowry, who had a 67.

Another stroke back was Dave Hill, who shot a 71, while Miller Barber and Gene Littler were at 139. Barber had a 71 and Littler a 68.

Palmer, who has not won since taking the Senior Tournament Players Championship in June 1985, opened his round with an eagle-3 on the par-5, 506-yard first hole, knocking his second shot--a 3-iron--205 yards to within 3 inches of the hole.

He also eagled the par-5, 506-yard closing hole, hitting his 6-iron second shot to within 18 feet and making the putt.

He ended the day with three birdies and two bogeys in addition to the eagles.

Palmer has won 61 PGA Tour events and 9 on the over-50 PGA Seniors Tour. His best finish this year was a third in the Northwest tournament, and he is 21st on the 1987 money list with just under $103,000.

Doug Tewell shot a five-under-par 66 for a one-stroke lead over Danny Edwards and Phil Blackmar in the third round of the $300,000 Pensacola Open at Pensacola, Fla.

Tewell has a 54-hole total of 201 on the 7,154-yard course at the Perdido Bay Resort.

Edwards, the 1985 Pensacola champion, held a share of the lead until he bogeyed the par-4, 454-yard 18th hole after his tee shot wound up in a fairway bunker. He had a 68 to tie Blackmar, who shot a 66, at 202.

Blackmar recorded two eagles to increase his PGA Tour-leading total to 15.

Spain’s Severiano Ballesteros shot a five-under-par 67 to close within one stroke of leader Bernhard Langer of West Germany after three rounds of the $444,000 German Masters tournament at Stuttgart.

Langer, who eagled the final hole to maintain his lead, shot a 71 and was at 208.