St. Charles Country Club yesterday cashed in on their outstanding performance of the previous day to open a six-shot lead with 18 holes of the Goodwill Tournament remaining.

Inspired by a solid round of 70 by professional Mike Sherman, the Winnipeg club turned in a net 57 at Mid Ocean Club and are now odds-on to capture the title at only the second time of asking.

Beaconsfield Golf Club, Carnegie Abbey Country Club and Plantation at Pointe Verde Country Club are leading the chase on 174 with Raleigh Country Club alone in fifth place on 176. The likelihood is that, with the leaders playing their final round today on the same course, Port Royal, they will all be playing for second place.

Sherman, whose band of amateurs include Oliver Plett, Charlie Spiring and Dominic Dirisio, said last night that a team meeting to discuss strategy and settle nerves was on the cards. But, after shooting a spectacular 52 at Riddell's Bay on Wednesday to raise the bar, it appears there is little that can prevent the Canadians from walking away as the newest champions later this afternoon.

"Everyone was nervous," Sherman insisted about St. Charles's start on the 10th tee at Mid Ocean yesterday. "We managed to make par on the first hole, got a couple of birdies in and everything started to happen. I had a good round. One of my guys (Plett) wasn't all that great today but he had a personal best yesterday."

Indeed, Plett had a day to remember on Wednesday when he shot a 75 as St. Charles closed with four net eagles on their last seven holes. "It was the first time that he has broken 80, I'm certain," Sherman said. "Whether you call it luck or not, every hole we've had one person do really well. And when the team is not doing well, I sneak a birdie in.

"One of the things that they told me before we came down was for me to try to play as consistent as possible, not taking a lot of risks. So, regardless of how they do, they know that I'll be always there for them."

At Riddell's Bay, Sherman was afforded the opportunity to sit back in awe as Dirisio recorded a net eagle on number two, their 11th hole, and Spiring had successive net eagles on seven and eight. The professional finished the day in style at the par-four ninth when he hit a four-wood to within a foot of the cup for a tap-in eagle, which confirmed that he has finally adjusted to local conditions.

"Last year we finished about 28th," Sherman added. "It was my first time to Bermuda and one of the other team member's first time. Hitting a six-iron from 150 that I normally hit 170, it takes some time to get adjusted to that. You look at the card for the yardage and say that you are going to hit eight-iron but you know that you have to hit seven or six."

Individually, Sherman is trailing in joint second place in the professional division to none other than Tim Conley, the six-time Belmont Invitation winner, who is headlining the Avila Golf Club challenge this week.

Conley holds a five-point lead over four golfers, including Dwayne Pearman, the Ocean View GC pro, in the stableford event that was introduced following cancellation of the 18-hole strokeplay competition. He has compiled 118 points with identical scores of 38 at Port Royal and Riddell's Bay, and 42 at Belmont.

In the Senior Division, John Carney, of Bricklanding Plantation Country Club, has an impressive total of 115 and holds a six-point lead over Ed Whalley, of Meadow Brook Golf Club, and Kevin Morris, of Westchester Hills Country Club.

Full results, see Scoreboard