The championship match is set at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. Will Hunter Mahan successfully defend his title, or will Matt Kuchar get the win at Dove Mountain?

Make your prediction in the comments below.

MARANA, Ariz. -- Matt Kuchar has finally played his way into the title tilt at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship for the first time.

Kuchar has come close each of the last two years. He lost to eventual champ Luke Donald in the 2010 semifinals and went on to finish third when he beat Bubba Watson in the consolations.

A year ago, Kuchar was eliminated in the quarterfinals 6 and 5 by the eventual champ Hunter Mahan, the man he'll face in the championship match.

"This has been a lot of golf, and it's fun to continue to survive," Kuchar said. "... So excited to make the championship match, won five matches now, but it's a thrill. To have a chance to win the title here at the Accenture Match Play is pretty exciting."

Kuchar traied briefly when he made a bogey at the second hole. But he squared the match with a par at No. 4 and took a 1-up advantage when he rolled in a 13-footer for birdie at No. 6.

Another birdie at the eighth, this time on a 23-inch putt after Kuchar just missed the green on the par 5, put him 2 up. He and Day traded wins on the next two holes, then Kuchar went 3 up when he parred the 13th.

Kuchar closed out the match with a 5-footer for birdie at No. 15. Day's drive traveled 291 yards on the par 4 that  was playing 312 but he chipped short and couldn't convert from 22 feet to extend the match.

Day, who beat two former major winners on Saturday, was disappointed but still saw the glass half-full.

"I think the whole week in itself is a positive week for myself," Day said. "I played good golf against great golfers, and I've got one more match to go against probably one of the most feared match play players."

SCORECARD STATS Kuchar made three birdies and three bogeys. Day made four bogeys and one double bogey.

HOLES WON: Kuchar won six holes. Day won three holes.

NEXT OPPONENT: Kuchar plays Hunter Mahan, who beat Ian Poulter 4 and 3 in the other semifinal. The championship match will begin at 2:15 p.m. ET (12:15 p.m. MT). Day will play Poulter in the third-place match beginning at 1:55 p.m. ET (11:55 p.m. MT).

MARANA, Ariz. -- Brisk winds and much cooler temperatures are making things difficult on the semifinalists at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship on Sunday.

Both matches are on the back nine with Hunter Mahan leading Ian Poulter 2 up and Matt Kuchar owning the same advantage over Jason Day. The Kuchar-Day match is on the 12th hole while Mahan and Poulter are playing No. 11.

Neither Day nor Poulter has been able to make a birdie as the winds are blowing in the 15-20 mph range, with gusts increasing to 35. Temperatures will struggle to make it into the low 50s and the wind chill is much lower.

The third-place match will start at approximately 2 p.m. ET (noon MT) with the championship on tap for roughly 2:15 p.m. ET (12:15 p.m. MT).

The semifinals are set for the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. Here's a look at each of the final four:

JASON DAY (vs. Matt Kuchar in semifinals)
How he got here: Def. Zach Johnson 6 and 5, def. Russell Henley in 19 holes, def. Bubba Watson 4 and 3, def. Graeme McDowell 1 up.
Holes won: 25
Holes lost: 13
No. of holes trailed this week: 11
Career AMPC record: 7-2
Of note: Jason Day will be 25 years, 3 months and 12 days old tomorrow.  He would be the fourth-youngest winner of a World Golf Championships event. Tiger Woods was the youngest (1999 Bridgestone Invitational), second-youngest (1999 Cadillac Championship) and third-youngest (2000 Bridgestone Invitational).

MATT KUCHAR (vs. Jason Day)
How he got here: Def. Hiroyuki Fujita 3 and 2, def. Sergio Garcia 2 and 1, def. Nicolas Colsaerts 4 and 3, def. Robert Garrigus (No. 36), 3 and 2.
Holes won: 23
Holes lost: 11
No. of holes trailed this week: 2
Career AMPC record: 13-3
Of note: Kuchar has yet to play the 18th hole this week. Only Luke Donald (2011) and Tiger Woods (2003) have won the Accenture Match Play Championship without playing the final hole in any of their six matches.

HUNTER MAHAN (vs. Ian Poulter)
How he got here: Def. Matteo Manassero 5 and 4, def. Richard Sterne 4 and 3, def. Martin Kaymer 5 and 4, def. Webb Simpson 1 up.
Holes won: 19
Holes lost: 6
No. of holes trailed this week: None
Career AMPC record: 14-4 (2012 champion)
Of note: Like Poulter, with a win this week, Mahan would join Tiger Woods (16) and Geoff Ogilvy (3) as the only players with more than two World Golf Championships titles..

IAN POULTER (vs. Hunter Mahan)
How he got here: Def. Stephen Gallacher 2 and 1, def. Bo Van Pelt 3 and 1, def. Tim Clark 5 and 3, def. Steve Stricker 3 and 2.
Holes won: 22
Holes lost: 9
No. of holes trailed this week: 3
Career AMPC record: 22-9 (2010 champion)
Of note: Only Tiger Woods (33) and David Toms (24) have won more matches at the Accenture Match Play; Stewart Cink also has 22 wins.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

MARANA, Ariz. -- Hunter Mahan played the 18th hole on Saturday afternoon for the first time in four matches this week as he beat the reigning U.S. Open champion.

In fact, the last time Mahan played the 18th hole was in his opening match last year as he embarked on a successful march to the championship. The sixth hole of that match against Zach Johnson last year also was the last time Mahan trailed -- which is an impressive streak of 151 holes.

Mahan and Simpson both played well. They halved the first four holes before Mahan drew first blood with a 17-footer for birdie at the fifth hole.

Simpson birdied the par-5 eighth to square the match but Mahan's 26-footer at No. 10 put him 1 up again. Simpson then got up-and-down from the greenside bunker at the par-5 13th for another birdie to square the match.

Mahan got the final edge, though, when he drove the 15th green and two-putted for birdie from 56 feet. The next three holes were halved with pars and Mahan's record improved to 14-4.

"Difficult match against Webb," Mahan said. "Great competitor, great player. I knew it was going to be a tough one, and it was. It was really a seesaw battle. I don't think either one of us really gained too much momentum, it was so back and forth. 

"I made a couple nice up and downs and made some nice putts today. In the afternoon that's kind of what led me to victory, obviously making the par on 16 gave me the 1 up lead and I was able to finish it down the stretch. But tight match and really could have gone either way."

SCORECARD STATS: Mahan made five birdies and didn't drop a shot to par. Simpson made five birdies and one bogey.

HOLES WON: Mahan won three holes. Simpson won two holes.

NEXT OPPONENT: Mahan plays Ian Poulter, who beat Steve Stricker 3 and 2 in the quarterfinals.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

MARANA, Ariz. -- Jason Day earned his way into the semifinals in a big way by taking down two major champions on Saturday.

After dispatching Bubba Watson with relative ease in the morning, Day had to dig deep in the afternoon when neither he nor Graeme McDowell had their best stuff.

The 2010 U.S. Open champion won the first hole with a conceded birdie and made another one at the third to go 2 up. When McDowell bogeyed the fourth and seventh holes, though, the match was square again.

Day took the lead for the first time with a birdie at the par-5 11th hole. McDowell then squared the match with a birdie at the 14th but Day answered with a 3-footer at the next to get back to 1 up.

Another see-saw spurt saw McDowell and Day trade wins with pars at Nos. 16 and 17. So Day took a 1-up lead to the 18th hole where he two-putted from 42 feet for the win and McDowell missed a 16-footer for birdie to extend the match.

"It was very stressful out there today," Day said. "I feel like my mind is going every which way right now. Just to play the way I did on the back nine was very, very special.  The whole game today felt really, really nice, and I'm looking forward to tomorrow. 

"You know, myself and G Mac, we really didn't play our best, but you've just got to do enough. That's because you're just playing against a guy that's across the tee from you. I've got Matt Kuchar tomorrow, and I know he's very slow and steady, hits a lot of fairways and greens and can roll the rock when he can, and I'm looking forward to that."

SCORECARD STATS: Day made four birdies and two bogeys. McDowell made five birdies and four bogeys.

HOLES WON: Day won five holes. McDowell won four holes.

NEXT OPPONENT: Day plays Matt Kuchar, who beat Robert Garrigus 3 and 2 in the quarterfinals.

The field of 64 has been pared down to the last four at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. The semifinal matches are Jason Day vs. Matt Kuchar and Ian Poulter vs. Hunter Mahan.

Who will face off in the final match? Who will win it all? Tell us who you've got in the comments. Bonus points if you had some of these players in your brackets.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

MARANA, Ariz. -- This battle of former Accenture Match Play Championship winners didn't disappoint.

Ian Poulter put a damper on Steve Stricker's 46th birthday, though, as he pulled away in the middle of the round for his 24th vicory in 33 matches in this global event.

Poulter actually made his first -- and only bogey -- in his last three matches at No. 1 as Stricker was in the process of making birdie there to go 1 up. The Englishman got back on track quickly, though, as he rolled in birdie putts of 5 and 40 feet on the next two holes to take the lead the bulldog would not relinquish.

While Poulter was sizing up that 40-footer, Stricker actually was looking at his own 7-footer for birdie at the third hole to possibly win it himself.

"Steve is always a tough person to beat, and he was going to play some good golf today," Poulter said. "That's exactly what he did. I managed to keep my nose in front, I guess, with a typical match play swing on the par-3 third hole. It looks like Steve is going to be going up right there, and I hole, he misses. And from then on I sort of took over and got myself in front."

Poulter holed a chip at the sixth hole for a 2-up lead and then drained a 25-footer for eagle at the par-5 eighth to go one better. Stricker's 4-footer for birdie at the 10th hole narrowed the gap to 2 down but Poulter responded with two consecutive birdies to take a 4-up lead.

A conceded birdie at the 14th hole gave Stricker a glimmer of hope at 3 down but the next two holes were halved with a birdie and a par and Poulter was on to the next round.

SCORECARD STATS: Poulter made six birdies, one eagle and one bogey. Stricker made four birdies and one bogey.

HOLES WON: Poulter won six holes. Stricker won three holes.

NEXT OPPONENT: Poulter plays Hunter Mahan, who beat Webb Simpson 1 up in the  quarterfinals.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

MARANA, Ariz. -- Robert Garrigus came to Dove Mountain to play in his first Accenture Match Play Championship brimming with confidence.

Matt Kuchar, though, had the experience and his steady game won out over the go-for-broke-style of Garrigus.

Kuchar never trailed in this quarterfinal match, winning the second hole with a 4-foot birdie after Garrigus missed from 6 feet. He went 2-up when Garrigus made bogey at the third hole but Kuchar did the same at the fourth.

Kuchar's birdies at the sixth and ninth holes gave him a 3-up advantage at the turn and he went one better at No. 10 when Garrigus made bogey. But Garrigus won the 12th hole with a par when Kuchar couldn't get up and down from the greenside bunker and the 13th with a 25-inch birdie putt to claw his way back into the match.

Kuchar then made a 4-footer for birdie at the 15th hole to get back to 3 up, and the win was assured when the two men halved the 16th with pars.

Kuchar has lost to the eventual champ last two years -- bowing to Luke Donald in the 2011 semifinals and Hunter Mahan in the quarters last year. He has a 13-3 record at this event.

"It's nice to be still alive and playing tomorrow," Kuchar said. "Robert today gave me a couple holes early. I got off to a nice lead and then I stumbled a little bit there kind of three-quarters into the round and kind of felt like we were back in a battle again. 

"I was pretty excited to hit some good shots on 14, 15 and 16 to be able to close him out and be able to hopefully go home soon and get some rest."

Garrigus said he thought he lose focus in the afternoon match after beating Freddie Jacobson 3 and 2 in the morning. His left wrist also locked up on him on the first hole.

"I still had a chance with making all those bad swings and hitting it in the bushes three or four times," he said. "If I kept it in the fairway in the afternoon, I would have been fine, but I kept hitting it in the darned desert.
 
"It was disappointing to lose the match, but all in all, it was a great week. Another top five in front of the stage that I wanted it in front of. It's not in Puerto Rico or México, this is a World Golf Championships, and it's all good things. I played well, Matt played well, we had a good time today, and that's about it."

SCORECARD STATS: Matt Kuchar made five birdies and three bogeys. Garrigus made three birdies, three bogeys and one double bogey.

HOLES WON: Kuchar won six holes. Garrigus won three holes

NEXT OPPONENT: Kuchar plays Jason Day, who beat Graeme McDowell 1-up in the quarterfinals.