Stallings storms five ahead at Challenge

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

LA QUINTA, California (Reuters) - Scott Stallings capitalized on a pair of eagles to surge five strokes clear of the field with a sizzling display of "conservatively aggressive" golf in the third round of the Humana Challenge on Saturday.

One shot off the pace overnight, the 27-year-old American fired a nine-under-par 63 on the Nicklaus Private course at PGA West, one of three venues hosting the tournament renowned for its low scoring in the California desert.

Bidding for a third victory on the PGA Tour, Stallings eagled the par-five 13th and eighth after starting out at the 10th to take command with a 22-under total of 194 in the pro-am celebrity event.

"I feel good," Stallings told reporters after scrambling well in a round that also included five birdies. "I played well. I stayed aggressive. I've been smart when I got out of position.

"I guess you can say it's conservatively aggressive. Like number eight today, I hit a really good drive and had eight iron," he said of his second eagle.

"But just because I had eight iron to a par-five, I fired it in the middle of the green, had a 20-footer and was happy to make it."

Former British Open champion Stewart Cink, who has struggled for consistency over the past four years, carded a 66 on the Palmer layout to share second place with fellow American Roberto Castro (69), co-leader overnight with rookie James Hahn.

Also at 17 under with Cink and Castro after another ideal day for scoring with hardly a breath of wind in the sun-drenched Coachella Valley were Americans Charles Howell III (67), John Rollins (64) and Charley Hoffman (67).