Kim earns semifinal berth in match play

CASARES, Spain, Oct. 30 (UPI) -- Anthony Kim lost his meeting with Scott Strange Friday and still earned a semifinal berth in the Volvo World Match Play Championship.

Kim will join Robert Allenby, Masters champion Angel Cabrera and Ross Fisher in Saturday's semifinals.

The 16-man field was divided into four groups in a format change this year and the winner of the round-robin competition within each group reached the semifinals.

Kim won his first two matches and was assured a semifinal spot as long as he did not lose by more than three holes to Strange.

Strange had a four-hole lead going to the 18th, but Kim hit his second shot to within 4 feet on the par-5 hole and his eagle putt allowed him to slip into the semifinals. All matches in the round-robin phase were played through to the 18th hole so the total number of holes won could be used as a tiebreaker.

Kim and Allenby will meet in the semifinals, a rematch of their singles showdown at last month's Presidents Cup. After that match, Allenby said Kim got back to the team hotel at 4 a.m., just a few hours before their scheduled match. Kim went on to post a 5-and-3 victory.