Paul Casey has taken another big step in his one-sided march through the Match Play Championship by beating Stewart Cink in 14 holes at chilly, windy Dove Mountain, where light rain turned heavy Saturday. Cink's loss left no Americans in the semifinals for the first time in the tournament's 12-year history. It was Casey's fourth 5 and 4 win in four rounds. The Englishman who lives in Scottsdale has yet to play the final four holes in the event. Casey faces Colombian Camilo Villegas, a 4 and 3 winner over South African Retief Goosen. In the other quarterfinals, Spain's Sergio Garcia beat Oliver Wilson 4 and 3, and Englishman Ian Poulter edged Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand 1-up. Thongchai had not trailed in a match all week until Poulter went 1-up on the 17th hole. Thongchai, seeded No. 48, lost when his 15-foot putt hung on the left lip of the cup on the 18th. The day began chilly when the first group teed off at 7:10 A.M., local time. The wind picked up through the morning and gray clouds moved in. The rain began to fall just as the golfers were wrapping up the quarterfinals. Casey won three consecutive holes to go 4-up at the turn. Cink managed to win the 13th hole, but Casey won the next two. He sank a 15-footer for birdie on No. 13, then clinched it when both birdied No. 14. The Americans' poor showing was enhanced by the absence of three-time champion Tiger Woods because of his sex scandal and Phil Mickelson, who took the week off for a family vacation. The event's top-seeded player, American Steve Stricker, was knocked out in the first round. The semifinals included two Englishmen, a Colombian and a Spaniard. Casey was the only one who had made it to the semis before. Garcia had never advanced to the quarterfinals in eight tries until this year. Villegas lost in the first round in 2008 and in the third round last year, his first two appearances. Poulter, in his seventh match play, made it to the semifinals in 2005. Pettersen leads LPGA In Thailand, former champion Suzann Pettersen of Norway extended her lead to five strokes at the LPGA Thailand Saturday after shooting a 4-under 68 in her third bogey-free round. The 2007 winner totaled 18-under 198. Song-Hee Kim of South Korea holed three birdies in the last four holes to hit a 68. After two error-free rounds, Ai Miyazato of Japan bogeyed twice Saturday to offset four birdies to finish with a 70 and share of third place at 204 with compatriot Momoko Ueda (69) and 2008 LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng of Taiwan (68). Christie Kerr made two eagles in a 66 to be a further shot back, along with 2009 LPGA Thailand runner-up Hee Young Park (72) and Maria Hjorth (70).
