Canada Back In Front At World Cup Qualifier

Playing at scenic Joelahtme Parish, Anderson and Delaet are at 19 under par 197, three strokes ahead of Wales and five up on Portugal. The Welsh duo of Jamie Donaldson and Stephen Dodd shot 68 to drop back from first to second place at 16 under.

"Stu played awesome today", said DeLaet. "He carried us today. I was able to contribute but he shot eight of our birdies today".

Canada started Saturday's round in the Fourball format with a birdie blitz on the first four holes, adding another on the sixth, followed by run of pars until the 11th hole.

They went on to birdie the 12th and 13th before dropping a shot at the 14th hole. Another birdie came on the 16th and the duo birdied their final hole for the third consecutive day.

Canada's only blemish on an otherwise perfect score card was that bogey at the par four 14th.

"I spun my ball of the green from 100 yards and Stuart hit the green in regulation but three putted.

"It always hurts to make bogey in this format but we recovered well and made a couple more birdies", said DeLaet.

Although Anderson made the lion's share of Canada's birdies, he was quick to point out how important DeLaet's par making had been for the team.

"Graham made the pars today and that freed me up to fire it at the flags and to be aggressive. We worked as a team and his pars were crucial. They made my birdie putts look easier."

Looking ahead to the final round, DeLaet was clear about the Canadian team's plans for the final round foursomes.

"We will have the same team order tomorrow (Sunday) as we did on Friday but we might play a little more passively as we have a bit of a cushion.

"We aren't thinking too much about China yet. We will take care of business tomorrow then we can be excited about the World Cup."

The championship consists of two days of foursomes and two days of four-ball competition.

The World Cup got its start in 1953 at Beaconfield Golf Club in Montrea when Canadian industrialist John Jay Hopkins donated the inaugural Canada Cup for competition among two-man teams of professional golfers representing their countries. Seven nations took part in 1953 and Argentina claimed the first championship.

Twenty-four countries take part in the tournament in two days of foursomes and two days of four-ball competition. Eighteen teams are made up of top players from the Official World Golf Ranking, and the other six teams reach the final through a qualifying tournament. The championship consists of two days of foursomes and two days of four-ball competition.

The trophy was renamed the World Cup in 1967.

A Canadian team never did win the Canada cup but in 1968 Al Balding of Toronto and Winnipeg's George Knudson brought home the first World Cup. In 1980 Jim Nelford of Burnaby, BC and Dan Haldorson of Shilo, Manitoba claimed the title. The last World Cup triumph for Canada came in 1985 thanks to Dave Barr of Kelowna, BC and Haldorson.

Omega Mission Hills World Cup European Qualifier
Estonian Golf & Country Club, Jõelähtme Parish, Estonia

1 CANADA, -19 65 69 63 -- 197
2 WALES, -16 66 66 68 -- 200
3 PORTUGAL, -14 67 71 64 -- 202
4 AUSTRIA, -10 67 70 69 -- 206
5 SCOTLAND, -9 69 71 67 -- 207
6 FINLAND, -8 67 68 73 -- 208
7 ICELAND, -7 69 74 66 -- 209
8 ESTONIA, -6 67 75 68 -- 210
9 SLOVENIA, -3 70 71 72 -- 213
10 MOROCCO, -2 69 75 70 -- 214
11 SWITZERLAND, -1 72 75 68 -- 215
12 SERBIA, Par 72 77 67 -- 216
T13 ISRAEL, +4 72 77 71 -- 220
T13 POLAND, +4 71 79 70 -- 220
15 NAMIBIA, +8 74 77 73 -- 224
16 CROATIA, +11 74 81 72 -- 227
17 GREECE, +18 73 85 76 -- 234
DQ ALGERIA, 70 75 --