ABERDEEN, Scotland – After capturing his first major title at last year’s U.S. Open, Justin Rose took nearly 13 months to return to the winner’s circle.

Now he’s heading to the British Open seeking a third tournament victory in three weeks.

Rose turned the final round of the Scottish Open into a procession on Sunday, calmly shooting a 6-under 65 to win by two strokes and seal back-to-back successes either side of the Atlantic.

A fortnight ago, the Englishman won the Quicken Loans National at Congressional in a playoff to finally shrug off that hangover from Merion.

“It’s uncharted territory for me – I’ve never won two in a row before,” said Rose, who has banked almost $2 million in prize money from his two victories.

The big question now is: can he make it three in a row? Definitely, judging by his impressive body of work over the Royal Aberdeen links since Thursday.

Four straight rounds in the 60s. Imperious iron play in varying wind conditions. Brilliant putting, which has long been his weak point. The confidence of being a major champion stood out Sunday – Rose was nerveless from the moment he rolled in a 12-foot putt on the second hole, the first of six birdies.

His closest challengers had no chance, with playing partner Marc Warren – who started out in the last group with Rose tied at 10-under – watching on in awe.

“Not a lot I could have done about that,” said Warren, who shot a 70 for third place. “Once he gets out in front, he’s very tough to catch. The whole day he was very clinical.

“I don’t like being on the end of it but it was a pleasure to watch.”

Unheralded Swede Kristoffer Broberg finished second on 14 under after a 66, one of a slew of low scores on a windless final day that left Royal Aberdeen defenseless and there for the taking. If players wanted one last tough test before Hoylake, it wasn’t going to come here with because of a lack of wind off the North Sea, soft greens after morning rain and some easy pin positions.

Broberg earned one of the three qualifying places for the British Open at Hoylake, along with other top-10 finishers Tyrrell Hatton and Scott Jamieson.

Scotland’s Stephen Gallacher and Chile’s Felipe Aguilar broke the course record with 8-under 63s and deposed champion Phil Mickelson saved his best round for last with a 65.

Mickelson was tied for 11th while Rory McIlroy tied for 14th after a 67. Both world stars seemed satisfied with the state of their games ahead of the British Open, however.

“I feel a lot sharper and I feel like I have direction in my ball-striking and direction in my short game and putting,” said Mickelson, who will be defending the claret jug.

Likely up to No. 3 in the world from No. 6 with this 15th professional victory worldwide and first in Europe since 2007, Rose is in prime form heading to his home major. And there was no stopping him here.

The Englishman rolled in birdies at Nos. 2 and 3 – the latter from 25 feet – to power into a two-shot lead over Warren, who was looking to avenge a final-round meltdown at the Scottish Open two years ago when he blew a three-shot lead with four to play.

Rose added three more birdies in the front nine and another at No. 12, before parring his way home. He had the luxury of being able to soak up the applause as he ambled down the 18th hole, having planted his drive straight down the fairway and his approach onto the center of the green.

His iron play has been commanding this week, reviving memories of the form he produced at Merion.

“I was pretty calm out there as I got off to a good start,” Rose said. “I never felt in a lot of trouble.

Rose is making a habit of winning on tough courses, with Royal Aberdeen joining a list that includes Merion, Doral, Valderrama and most recently Congressional.

“It feels unbelievable to be back in the winner’s circle so quickly,” he said.

SOUTHPORT, England – Mo Martin hit the best shot of her life, and it made her a major champion Sunday in the Women’s British Open.

From the middle of the fairway on the par-5 18th hole at Royal Birkdale, Martin ripped a 3-wood that she first thought was too short, and then worried might be too long. It turned out to be close to perfect. The ball hit the middle of the pin and settled 6 feet away for an eagle.

An hour later, that turned out to be the winning shot for the 31-year-old American when Inbee Park and Shanshan Feng could not stay under par.

“I think I still need to be pinched,” Martin said.

A strong wind finally arrived off the Irish Sea, bringing an air of unpredictability to the final round of the Ricoh Women’s British Open.

But this was the topper.

Martin is among the shortest hitters in the game, and won with an eagle – her first of the year. It took her six years just to reach the LPGA Tour, and her first victory in her 64th tournament came in a major championship. She closed with an even-par 72 on a day so tough that no one broke par.

Martin was the only player to break par for the championship, finishing at 1-under 287 for a one-shot victory over Feng and Suzann Pettersen.

Feng made eight straight pars – that constituted a charge on this demanding day – and had the outright lead until she made bogey on the 16th hole. A playoff looked likely because the two closing holes at Royal Birkdale are par 5s. Feng missed birdie chances of about 15 feet and 10 feet. She shot 75.

Park, who started the day with a one-shot in her quest to become only the seventh woman to capture four of the LPGA’s majors, fell out of the lead by going long on the par-3 14th hole and never caught up. She missed a 12-foot birdie putt on the 17th, and then put her tee shot into the right rough on the easy 18th hole. Her third shot found a bunker, and Park made bogey for a 77.

Pettersen finished birdie-birdie to share second place, but her hopes in effect ended with a double bogey – her second of the round – on the 13th hole.

That left Martin, a UCLA mighty mite who stands no more than 5-foot-2, alone on the range getting ready for a playoff that never happened.

All because of one shot.

“An absolutely perfect 3-wood,” she said. “When it was in the air, I said, `Sit.’ And then I said, `Stop.’ And then when it was going toward the hole, I said, `OK, I don’t have anything more to say to that ball.’ I actually heard it hit the pin. It’s definitely one to remember.”

Americans now have won the first three majors of the LPGA Tour season for the first time since 1999, following Lexi Thompson at the Kraft Nabisco Championship and Michelle Wie at the U.S. Women’s Open.

A more likely candidate would have been Stacy Lewis, the defending champion, who also started only three shots behind. Lewis didn’t make a birdie until the 18th hole and closed with a 78. Wie missed the cut, and Thompson finished 15 shots out of the lead.

Martin had a three-shot lead going into the weekend, building her strategy on keeping the ball in the fairway. But she had a 77 in the third round, and that figured to be the end of her chances. After two bogeys in five holes to start the final round, she was solid the rest of the way.

“Absolutely a dream come true,” Martin said. “Safe to say it’s the best week of my life.”

Canada’s Alena Sharp fired a final round 75 to climb into a tie for 51st. The 13-over 301 tally will earn her $10,541. The Hamilton, Ont. native has two top-20 finishes on the LPGA Tour this year.

Winnipeg – Thanks to two birdies over his final four holes, Las Cruces, New Mexico’s Tim Madigan carded a 3-under 68 at Pine Ridge Golf Club on Saturday to take a two stroke lead thru 54 holes at The Players Cup.

Madigan, a 25-year old PGA Tour Canada rookie, is looking to put the exclamation point on what has been a stellar season so far that includes two top-three finishes. The New Mexico State graduate led by two shots over Fargo, North Dakota’s Josh Persons, who clipped Madigan by a shot to win the Bayview Place Island Savings Open presented by Times Colonist last month.

“There are plenty of great players behind me and anyone can play well on this course, so I’m definitely not out of the woods yet,” said Madigan, refusing to get ahead of himself with one round to go. “I just hope the lead gets bigger and bigger.”

Madigan, who earned exempt status on PGA Tour Canada this spring at the British Columbia Qualifying Tournament, has earned a wealth of experience this season, narrowly missing out on a playoff in Victoria and playing in the final group on Sunday at the Syncrude Boreal Open presented by AECON, where he finished third. Madigan said the experience has helped him to play into contention once again this week.

“Every time you’re near the lead, it definitely gives you an idea of what you need to do the next time,” Madigan said. “I’ve had enough experience with amateur golf, college golf and professional golf that I feel like I can handle it no problem. I still have to play very well because I’ve got a lot of great players behind me.”

Currently sitting fourth on the Order of Merit, Madigan has been knocking on the door for a win for some time now, both on PGA Tour Canada and elsewhere.

“I hate to put it this way, but I feel like I’m due,” Madigan said. “I’ve been close on the eGolf West Tour and a couple of times on PGA Tour Canada, so just I feel like it may be my time. I just have to not worry about it. Just get plenty of rest, and just have fun and see where all the chips land.”

Madigan and Persons will play together in the day’s final group, setting up a duel with no shortage of storylines. Persons, currently third on the Order of Merit, will be trying to chase down Madigan to secure a spot in the top three through next week’s Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel.

“I really wanted to play in the last group,” said Persons, who birdied the 18^th hole to sit solo second through 54 holes. “It’s where you want to be, and obviously we’re going head-to-head here, so it’ll be fun. I’m going to do the best I can, and if that’s good enough it’s good enough. If it’s not, I’ll shake his hand at the end of the day.”

One shot back of Persons was Edmonds, Washington’s Ricky McDonald, who carded a 1-under 71 to sit 6-under through three rounds.

EDMOND, Okla. – Gene Sauers shot a 3-under 68 on Saturday to take a three-stroke lead in the third round of the U.S. Senior Open.

Sauers had a 33 on the back nine to take control at Oak Tree National heading into the final round on Sunday. He is at 7 under for the tournament.

Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer and Scott Dunlap are tied for second at 4 under.

Langer, who has dominated the Champions Tour all season, was solid, but had several potential birdies lip out during his even-par 71.

Marco Dawson, who shot a 76 on Friday, rebounded with a 69 on Saturday and is tied for fifth with Jeff Sluman and Vijay Singh.

Canada’s Rod spittle is tied for 44th at 9-over thru 3 rounds in Oklahoma.

SILVIS, Ill. (AP) — Brian Harman had two eagles in a 6-under 65 on Saturday that gave him a one-stroke lead after three rounds of the John Deere Classic.

Harman’s solid performance got him to 17-under 196 for the tournament at TPC Deere Run. Three-time winner Steve Stricker is alone in second, one stroke better than Scott Brown heading into the final round.

Tim Clark, Jerry Kelly, William McGirt and 2012 champion Zach Johnson are three back at 14-under 199. Clark shot a 64 to move into contention.

The 27-year-old Harman has never finished better than third on the PGA Tour, but he played quite well in the third round. The lefty hit 17 greens and 12 of 14 fairways.

Harman bogeyed Nos. 12 and 18, the latter by missing the green with his approach. His eagles came from 30 feet on the par-5 second and from 47 feet on the par-5 17th.

Stricker finished strong for a 7-under 64. He had his streak of bogey-free holes end at 24 with a 5 at the par-4 11th, but rallied for birdies on the last two holes.

Brown matched the lowest PGA Tour round of 2014 with his 10-under 61. On a day when players were allowed to clean their ball in the fairway because of an early morning downpour, he flirted with a 59, but had to settle for birdie on the par-5 17th after reaching the green in two shots, and then parred the par-4 18th.

Jhonattan Vegas played with Brown and nearly matched his score with a bogey-free 63 for 200, tying Ryan Moore for ninth place. He opened with three birdies in succession, and collected an eagle on the 17th.

Clark has missed the cut in five of his last seven tournaments, but birdied seven holes to post his best round of the year and get within three shots of Harman.

Harman’s long eagle putt on the second hole triggered his nice round.

He had birdies on the fourth and eighth holes to go out in 31, and then added two more birdies before his long downhill eagle putt on the 17th, which turned left in the last 15 feet before falling into the cup. His bogey at the final hole, coupled with Stricker’s birdie there, trimmed his three-stroke lead to one shot.

Brown’s 61 came after what he called a “bad 1-under” 70 on Friday.

“I was just trying to get back into the golf tournament, and it turned into a great round,” Brown said.

Vegas, who had shoulder surgery last year, needs to make over $280,000 this week and in his next two tournaments to keep his PGA Tour card. A good finish here could take care of that.

“Whatever happens happens, to be honest,” Vegas said. “If it works, fine. If it doesn’t, we go to the range.”

Johnson’s 2-under 69 extended his streak of under-70 rounds at par-71 Deere Run to 23.

Defending champion Jordan Spieth shot 67 and is tied for 14th at 202, six strokes behind Harman. Spieth came from six off the pace last year to win.

Canada’s Brad Fritsch climbed 24 spots up the leaderboard on moving day to get within striking distance of the lead. The Ottawa native is at 12-under 201, five back of the lead, after a third round 63.

David Hearn slipped five spots down the leaderboard into a tie for 62nd after his third round 69. The Brantford, Ont. native is sitting at 4-under 209.

HOYLAKE, England – Tiger Woods returned to Royal Liverpool on Saturday for the first time since he won his third British Open title in 2006.

The links course looked the same – except for the color of the grass.

Woods eight years ago played on a links that was baked out and brown from weeks of sunshine. The course was so firm and fast that he famously hit driver only once in 72 holes on his way to a two-shot victory over Chris DiMarco.

The 14-time major champion arrived at the course Saturday morning on the northwest coast of England for his first major of the year.

Woods had back surgery March 31 to relieve a nerve impingement, which caused him to miss the Masters for the first time and then the U.S. Open. He returned earlier than he expected three weeks ago in the Quicken Loans National at Congressional, where he missed the cut by four shots.

There was a light rain during his practice round, the first time it has rained this week. The forecast for next week is mostly cloudy and mild temperatures, with rain possible on the weekend of the British Open.

Defending champion Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler and Justin Rose were among those at Royal Aberdeen for the Scottish Open. Woods did not have Hoylake to himself. According to photos posted on Twitter by Royal Liverpool, top-ranked Adam Scott and Jason Day also were practicing.

Woods has gone nearly a year without winning. His last victory was the Bridgestone Invitational the first week in August, where he rolled to a seven-shot victory. He ended last year without a major for the fifth straight year, and got off to a slow start this year with recurring back pain that eventually led to surgery.

He has had a chance to win on Sunday in the last two British Opens. He tied for third at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2012, though he took himself out of contention early in the final round. And he was among several players with a chance on the back nine at Muirfield last year until Mickelson pulled away.

Woods is playing only the final two majors this year, both on courses where he previously won – Hoylake in 2006 and Valhalla for the PGA Championship in 2000.

SOUTHPORT, England – One year later, Inbee Park is still chasing history at the Women’s British Open.

Instead of trying to win an unprecedented fourth straight major, Park has a chance to become only the seventh woman to win four of the LPGA’s majors. Instead of photographers capturing her every move at St. Andrews, the 26-year-old South Korean has gone about her work without fanfare at Royal Birkdale.

That changed Saturday with a remarkable start, and a late ruling that put Park in the lead.

On the tough opening stretch at Royal Birkdale, she ran off three birdies that sent her to a 4-under 68. Then, Park went from a one-shot deficit to a one-shot lead when Ahn Sun-Ju was penalized two shots after her round for building a stance in the bunker on the 18th hole.

“I definitely enjoyed it last year,” Park said. “But this year has just been a little bit different. Last year I enjoyed it and having pressure and experiencing something I never have experienced before. If I end up winning tomorrow, I’ll definitely enjoy this year better.”

The 18 holes remaining could be a sprint among a dozen players.

Park had a one-shot lead over a pair of major champions – Suzann Pettersen of Norway (68) and Shanshan Feng of China (69) – along with Ahn. Julieta Granada (72) and Amelia Lewis (71) were another shot behind.

Ahn appeared to be the player to catch after what she thought was a 69 for a one-shot lead.

She was summoned to the rules trailer, where officials determined she used her left foot to build her stance in a pot bunker left of the 18th green. Ahn was assessed two shots for violating Rule 13-3. Her par turned into a double bogey. Her 69 became a 71. And she went from a one-shot lead in the final group to having to make up ground against Park, the LPGA Tour’s reigning player of the year.

“It’s disappointing, but it’s my mistake and I have to follow the rules of the game,” Ahn said through an interpreter. “I still have a day to go and I have to stay focused and try my best tomorrow.”

The penalty also created a wide-open final round at Royal Birkdale.

Park was at 4-under 212, though 12 players were within three shots of the lead.

One of them was Charley Hull, the go-for-broke English teenager who made nine birdies early Saturday for a tournament-best 66 that suddenly put her into contention to become the youngest major champion in LPGA Tour history. She was at 1-under 215.

Also in the mix was Mo Martin, the 31-year-old American done in by a four-hole stretch on the back nine that sent her to a 77. She also was at 215, along with former U.S. Women’s Open champion So Yeon Ryu, who made one bad decision and one bad swing, both leading to double bogey. Ryu had a 74.

Defending champion Stacy Lewis had a 70 and was three shots behind.

Park has been virtually ignored all week, a big difference from last year. That could be about to change.

“Yeah, I start to feel a little bit of pressure from now and tomorrow,” Park said. “But I’d rather be having the pressure than not being in contention.”

Ahn took the outright lead with a 25-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole, and was poised to stretch the margin.

Her penalty on the 18th actually began with a photographer who took a sequence of pictures at the top of her swing on her second shot. She caught it heavy and pulled it left, into the bunker, as she and her caddie looked back to see who was the culprit.

She blasted out of the sand and over the green, and did well to get down in two putts. Only later did officials determine she had built her stance. She said the ball was on the slope of the bunker and it was hard to make a stance.

“So what I was trying to do was fix a stance,” she said. “But after the review, it was determined that I used my feet to try to make an even lie. My intent wasn’t to break the rules. It was just to set my feet firm in the sand just to be able to make the shot. But that’s the rule. There was no intent and I can’t do anything about it.”

A one-shot lead is next to nothing in golf. Three shots can disappear quickly. And what could make this Women’s British Open go down to the wire is the finish at Royal Birkdale – three par 5s over the last four holes.

“You can make a double so quick on this golf course that you’ve just got to keep hanging in there,” Lewis said. “I you get in trouble, get out, and just stay patient. If you make a bogey, it’s OK because you’ve got some par-5 finishing holes here.”

Canada’s Alena Sharp carded a third-round 76 to sit tied for 62nd heading into Sunday’s finale.

ABERDEEN, Scotland – Justin Rose set up a chance to capture back-to-back titles by shooting a 5-under 66 at the Scottish Open on Saturday to move into a share of the lead with Marc Warren after three rounds.

Rose and Warren (67) are 10-under-par overall at the warm-up tournament for the British Open, one shot clear of Kristoffer Broberg of Sweden (68).

Nearly three weeks after winning the Quicken Loans National at Congressional, Rose has kept up his strong form despite struggling with hayfever and, more recently, sinus problems.

Warren, who held a three-shot lead midway through the third round, is looking to avenge a final-round collapse at his home Scottish Open in 2012.

Rory McIlroy (68) and Phil Mickelson (70) were unable to mount considerable challenges to the leaders and are seven and eight shots off the lead, respectively.

Last year’s runner-up is now a champion. Tyler Saunders capped off a consistent tournament,turning a 1-stroke deficit into a 2-stoke victory and earning his first ever Alberta Junior Boys Championship Friday at Bearspaw Golf Club in Calgary.

“I played solid golf, and putted really well,” said the newly crowned champion. “You can really be comfortable out there when you’re making putts and not hitting any real bad shots.”

Despite an early bogey on the 2nd hole, Saunders did not falter the rest of the round, as he birdied both 6 and 8 building a 4-stroke lead heading to the 18th hole.

“The course was perfect and the greens were running nice and quick,” he added. “It was fair and helped me play consistently.”

Saunders, joined by Andrew Harrison of Camrose, Alta., and Jack Wood of Banff, Alta. will form the Alberta Junior Boys Interprovincial Team that will compete in the Canadian Junior Boys Championship in Niagara Falls, Ont., July 29 to August 1.

Harrison began the day in the lead, but struggled throughout his round, until birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 put some pressure on Saunders.

Calgary’s Scott Walker, 16, won the Juvenile Championship by 6-strokes after shooting a final round 75.

Click here for full scores.

Winnipeg – Kalamazoo, Michigan’s Erik Barnes extended his lead at The Players Cup on Friday, carding a 1-under 70 at Pine Ridge Golf Club to take a two stroke lead heading into the weekend.

After a 63 on Thursday, Barnes battled windy conditions and a few nerves in the second round to grind out an under-par round and get two shots clear of a group of four players, including Bright’s Grove, Ont.’s Matt Hill, Yakima, Washington’s Brock Mackenzie, Little Rock, Arkansas’ Drew Stoltz and Fargo, North Dakota’s Josh Persons.

“I didn’t handle it so well on the front side,” said Barnes of starting the day with the lead. The 26-year old started with two bogeys on his front nine, but rebounded with three birdies coming in to reach 9-under. “I needed to be a little tougher mentally. I let a couple shots go and got frustrated. I tried to let go and pretend like it didn’t matter on the back side and tried to act like I didn’t care what I was shooting. I just tried to free myself up, which I did.”

Barnes will be in a familiar position heading into the weekend. He held a share of the 36-hole lead with England’s Kelvin Day last week at the SIGA Dakota Dunes Open presented by SaskTel. The Austin Peay State graduate said he was hoping to put the experience to use Saturday in Winnipeg.

“As long as I can handle it a little bit better than I did last Saturday,” said Barnes, whose third round 73 in Saskatoon took him out of contention. “I was a little bit nervous and made some nervous golf swings early in the round. I got off on the wrong foot, and I had I not done that I might have had a better chance of winning that golf tournament.”

Barnes admitted that he will feel pressure on the weekend as the field attempts to chase him down, but that he was ready to accept the challenge of being the frontrunner.

“We all know what’s a stake and we all want it really badly, otherwise we wouldn’t be playing,” said Barnes. “The guy that’s going to get it done is the guy who deals with it the best, and hopefully that will be me.”

Hill, who finished tied for eighth here in 2012 when he won the Order of Merit on PGA Tour Canada, carded a 3-under 68 to join a group tied for second heading into the weekend.

“I think I hit it a little bit better today but played pretty similar. I just kind of stuck to my game plan. I’m just going to try to keep doing what I’m doing,” Hill said.