Top-seeded Retief Goosen tied his own World Match Play record with an overwhelming 12 and 11 victory over Mark Hensby on Friday and will play United States Open champion Michael Campbell for a place in the final.
Campbell drew level with Steve Elkington at the 35th, winning at the 37th with a par to secure his place in Saturday’s semifinals.
In the other semifinal, Paul McGinley will play Angel Cabrera after McGinley comprehensively beat third-seeded Ryder Cup teammate Luke Donald nine and eight, and second-seeded Cabrera, who won the British PGA on this same Wentworth course in May, beat Jose Maria Olazabal four and three.
Goosen, the world’s fifth-ranked player, set the record when he beat Jeff Maggert by the same 12 and 11 margin last year.
His victory over Hensby allowed him to reach the semifinals for the first time in six attempts.
Goosen led by nine holes after the morning round and had a chance of a 13 and 11 victory but missed a 10-foot putt at the 25th.
”I’ve been lucky so far. I’ve had two guys who didn’t play so well.”
He beat Kenneth Ferrie eight and seven on Thursday.
Hensby’s putter, which helped him to a two and one victory on Thursday over Colin Montgomerie, turned cold on Friday. He missed at least six times from six feet or less during the morning.
Campbell led early against Elkington, but the Australian moved in front at the 10th and held the lead until the 32nd. At one stage, he was five-up.
Elkington went ahead again at the next, but Campbell squared at the 571-yard 35th when the Australian bogeyed.
At the first in the play-off, Elkington hit a poor second shot on the way to another bogey and Campbell won with a three-foot par putt.
”It was pretty ugly out there,” said Campbell. ”I kept telling myself, ‘I’m the US Open champion, I’m good enough to win this match.’
”It wasn’t my best scoring day and I’ll have to find my ‘A’ game for Goosen tomorrow.”
McGinley seized control early against Donald with four successive birdies from the third hole, two of them on putts of 20 and 18 feet.
Donald could not mount a comeback and got in trouble at the 15th, which McGinley won with a bogey. Then he bogeyed the 16th to fall five behind, and McGinley birdied the last before winning two of the first five holes in the afternoon.
From then, it was just a matter of time.
”Paul got off to a great start and putted absolutely beautifully,” Donald said. ”It was always going to be hard to get back in the match.”
His task was made more difficult by a stroke of luck for McGinley at the 23rd, where the Irishman rolled in a 45-foot downhill putt for birdie.
”I can’t take a huge amount of credit for that,” McGinley said. ”I watched Luke roll it eight feet past and I was just trying to lag it to the hole.
”All I was trying to do was get the pace right. But I was very much aware after lunch that I had to keep my foot down and not let him get momentum on his side.”
One hole earlier, Donald chipped in for birdie, but McGinley holed from eight feet for a birdie of his own.
Cabrera took the lead at the third hole of the morning round and never lost it. He was four-up after 23 holes.
Olazabal got back to two down with six to play, but hit his second shot at the 31st into trees and could not recover.
Cabrera birdied the short 32nd and wrapped it up with par at the next. — Sapa-AP