Finch advances on last hole win match play

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ANDALUCIA, Spain, May 18 (UPI) -- Richard Finch won the 18th hole Friday in securing the final spot in the knockout round of the European Tour's Volvo World Match Play Championship.

Finch was down two to Martin Kaymer after eight holes of the final round-robin match but pulled even with birdies at Nos. 9 and 11. Kaymer went back up again on 12 but had a bogey in the 14th hole that allowed Finch to get square.

Finch managed a par on the par-5 18th hole, where Kaymer again had a bogey. The 1-up win put Finch into Saturday's Round of 16.

Defending champion Ian Poulter won his Friday match 4-and-3 over Tom Lewis and took the Player Group. Lewis earlier in the day beat John Senden 1-up and he claimed the group's other knockout round spot.

Rafael Cabrera-Bello, with wins over Finch and Kaymer, won the Ballesteros Group.

Justin Rose and Robert Rock advanced out of the Gabrielsson Group. Rose was 2-0 and boosted Rock into the Round of 16 with a 6-and-4 win over Darren Clarke Friday afternoon.

Brandt Snedeker, Thomas Bjorn and Branden Grace tied at 1-1 in the McCormack Group but Grace, despite a 4-and-3 Friday afternoon win over Snedeker, lost on the tiebreaker.

Jbe Kruger drew a match against Robert Karlsson and lost to Graeme McDowell Friday and was eliminated. McDowell won the Larson Group with Karlsson second.

Sergio Garcia was 2-0 and Alvaro Quiros beat Tetsuji Hiratsuka in an early Friday match to advance out of the Woosnam Group.

Paul Lawrie and Camilo Villegas halved their Friday morning match but both qualified for the knockout round when Villegas beat Peter Hanson 6-and-4 in the afternoon.

Retief Goosen took the Palmer Group with a 2-0 mark while Nicolas Colsaerts finished second by taking a tiebreaker against Charl Schwartzel.

Saturday's schedule opens with Garcia playing Lewis followed by McDowell going against Finch. Lawrie and Bjorn have the third match of the day with Goosen and Rock off fourth.

Snedeker plays Villegas and Rose meets Colsaerts while Poulter faces Quiros and Cabrera-Bello is paired against Karlsson in the other Round of 16 matches.

Winners advance to the quarterfinals Saturday afternoon with the semifinals and finals set for Sunday.