Phil Mickelson misses FBR Open cut
... AND SO TOO DOES MARTIN LAIRD ON SAME SCORE (149)
World No 3 Phil Mickelson's seasonal debut in the FBR Open at Scottsdale, Arizona last only two rounds. With rounds of 76 and 73 over the par-71 lay-out, the left-hander's 36-hole tally of seven-over 149 missed the projected cut mark by some seven strokes.
Mind you, Phil knows what it's like to miss the cut in the FBR Open. He's now done it twice in three years although is the first time since he turned pro in 1992 that he has missed the cut in his first touornament of the season.
Scot Martin Laird also missed the cut on 149 with scores of 73 and 76 but Englishman Luke Donald surged out of the danger zone with a great second round of 65 - 11 shots better than his lacklustre opener - to qualify, almost certainly, for the last two rounds with a one-under-par halfway total of 141.
FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
Nick Watney shot an eight-under 63 to take the second-round lead at the FBR Open on Friday.
Play was called due to darkness with three players, all above the cut line, still on the course.
At 9 under through two rounds, Watney had a one-stroke lead over Charley Hoffman,Matt Kuchar and first-round co-leader James Nitties. Kenny Perry and Cameron Beckman were two shots back.
"I was hitting the ball close, and I kept telling my caddie just to get me on the green any way and I felt like I could hole it," Watney said.
He matched his career-low round, a first-round 63 in the 2008 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He tied for 36th that week.
Watney entered Friday five strokes off the lead but roared into contention with two eagles in a three-hole span. The first came on the par-5, 595-yard 13th hole and the second on the par-5, 552-yard 15th.
Watney also had four birdies, including three in a row on the front nine.
He attributed his hot putting to work he did in the offseason, when he tried to simplify his approach and "putt like you did when you were a kid."
"You tell a kid to hit it at that spike mark and he'll do it, so that's what I've been trying to do," Watney said.
Watney is contending for his second US PGA Tourvictory. His first came at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans two years ago.
Mickelson usually fares well in this event, although he has missed the cut here twice in the last three years. Mickelson is the leading money-winner in FBR/Phoenix Open history with $2.45 million earned in 20 years.
Mickelson never recovered from a disastrous five-over 76 in the first round. He had five bogeys and three pars in his morning round on Friday.
This is the first time Mickelson has missed the cut in his season debut in a pro career that began in 1992. But Mickelson said rust wasn't a factor.
"I feel I hit the ball fairly solid," Mickelson said. "I just made some errors here and there."
If recent history is any indication, Mickelson may be right where he needs to be.
Two years ago, he missed the cut here and bounced back to win at Pebble Beach one week later. Last year, he missed the cut at Pebble Beach and won the Northern Trust Open the next week.
The US Tour's next stop is the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines, near Mickelson's home.
"This will give me a few more days to get my game sharp," Mickelson said. "Again, it didn't feel as far off as the score indicated, obviously. But I'll get some good work done this weekend and hopefully come out sharp and ready to play next Thursday in San Diego."
It's hard to tell whether Mickelson's absence will hurt the FBR Open at the gate, where crowds are down. When he missed the cut two years ago, the event drew 93,475 for the final round, a Super Bowl Sunday record.
The FBR Open is the US Tour's most heavily attended event. But attendance has dipped each day this week compared with last year, when the tournament as a whole drew a record 538,356 with the Super Bowl in town.
On Friday, 111,013 attended, down about 9,000 from a year ago.
Mickelson wasn't the only big name to make an early exit. Anthony Kim, the world's No. 9 player, finished at four over and 10th-ranked Camilo Villegas was one over.
SECOND ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2 x 72)
133 Nick Watney 70 63
134 Charley Hoffman 66 68, Matt Kuchar 67 67, James Nitties (Aus) 65 69
135 Kenny Perry 72 63, Cameron Beckman 68 67, Webb Simpson 68 67
136 Brian Gay 68 68, Scott Piercy 69 67, Ryan Moore 69 67
137 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 72 65, Michael Letzig 70 67, Zach Johnson 71 66, Lucas Glover 65 72, David Berganio Jnr. 66 71, David Toms 69 68, Cliff Kresge 68 69, Kevin Na 67 70, Fredrik Jacobson (Swe) 72 65
138 Brad Adamonis 68 70, Brendon De Jonge 71 67, Vaughn Taylor 69 69, John Senden (Aus) 68 70, Bubba Watson 68 70, Jeff Maggert 70 68, Sean O'Hair 69 69, Rocco Mediate 68 70, Troy Matteson 70 68
139 Jonathan Kaye 68 71, Ted Purdy 71 68, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 70 69, Kevin Sutherland 68 71, Parker McLachlin 68 71, Steve Elkington (Aus) 70 69, Rickie Fowler 73 66, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 71 68
140 Kirk Triplett 70 70, Jeff Klauk 74 66, Hunter Mahan 73 67, Chad Campbell 70 70, J J Henry 69 71, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 71 69, Brett Quigley 69 71, Ryan Palmer 73 67, Nicholas Thompson 72 68
141 Brandt Jobe 72 69, Rodney Pampling (Aus) 72 69, Joe Ogilvie 71 70, Steve Flesch 69 72, Gary Woodland 70 71, Woody Austin 69 72, Charlie Wi (Kor) 73 68, Luke Donald (Eng) 76 65, Briny Baird 67 74, Jonathan Byrd 72 69
142 Dudley Hart 71 71, Pat Perez 69 73, Scott McCarron 70 72, John Merrick 72 70, Jeff Overton 70 72, Chris DiMarco 73 69, Ben Curtis 71 71, Mark Wilson 70 72, Kevin Streelman 73 69, Bob Tway 71 71, Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 69 73, Dean Wilson 69 73, Nathan Green (Aus) 73 69, John Rollins 71 71, D.J. Trahan 68 74, Jason Bohn 71 71
MISSED THE CUT
143 Brian Davis (Eng) 73 70, Jerry Kelly 71 72, Paul Azinger 70 73, Harrison Frazar 73 70, Todd Hamilton 74 69, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl) 70 73, Tommy Armour III 72 71, Alex Cejka (Ger) 71 72, Ben Crane 74 69, Justin Leonard 70 73, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 70 73, Tim Petrovic 71 72, Bo Van Pelt 71 72, Camilo Villegas (Col) 72 71, Brandt Snedeker 72 71, Stephen Ames (Can) 70 73
144 Arron Oberholser 73 71, George McNeill 68 76, Michael Allen 70 74, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 75 69, Tom Lehman 74 70, Jason Gore 69 75
145 Dustin Johnson 72 73, Mike Weir (Can) 73 72, Stewart Cink 73 72, Heath Slocum 69 76, Jesper Parnevik (Swe) 75 70
146 Steve Stricker 74 72, Steve Lowery 71 75, John Mallinger 72 74, Brian Bateman 71 75, Charles Howell III 71 75, J.B. Holmes 70 76, Anthony Kim 73 73, Bill Haas 74 72, Chris Couch 71 75, Johnson Wagner 76 70, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 76 70
147 Steve Marino 73 74, Jeff Quinney 73 74, Wes Short jun 72 75, Marc Turnesa 75 72, Scott Verplank 73 74
148 Derek Fathauer 74 74, Ken Duke 76 72, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 79 69, Fred Couples 74 74, Chez Reavie 73 75, Peter Lonard (Aus) 73 75
149 Tom Kalinowski 75 74, Phil Mickelson 76 73, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 78 71, Tim Herron 71 78, Mark Calcavecchia 74 75, Martin Laird (Sco) 73 76
150 Matt Bettencourt 74 76
151 Scott Hebert 76 75
154 Billy Mayfair 77 77
155 Eric Axley 77 78
160 Dean Vomacka 77 83
... AND SO TOO DOES MARTIN LAIRD ON SAME SCORE (149)
World No 3 Phil Mickelson's seasonal debut in the FBR Open at Scottsdale, Arizona last only two rounds. With rounds of 76 and 73 over the par-71 lay-out, the left-hander's 36-hole tally of seven-over 149 missed the projected cut mark by some seven strokes.
Mind you, Phil knows what it's like to miss the cut in the FBR Open. He's now done it twice in three years although is the first time since he turned pro in 1992 that he has missed the cut in his first touornament of the season.
Scot Martin Laird also missed the cut on 149 with scores of 73 and 76 but Englishman Luke Donald surged out of the danger zone with a great second round of 65 - 11 shots better than his lacklustre opener - to qualify, almost certainly, for the last two rounds with a one-under-par halfway total of 141.
FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
Nick Watney shot an eight-under 63 to take the second-round lead at the FBR Open on Friday.
Play was called due to darkness with three players, all above the cut line, still on the course.
At 9 under through two rounds, Watney had a one-stroke lead over Charley Hoffman,Matt Kuchar and first-round co-leader James Nitties. Kenny Perry and Cameron Beckman were two shots back.
"I was hitting the ball close, and I kept telling my caddie just to get me on the green any way and I felt like I could hole it," Watney said.
He matched his career-low round, a first-round 63 in the 2008 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He tied for 36th that week.
Watney entered Friday five strokes off the lead but roared into contention with two eagles in a three-hole span. The first came on the par-5, 595-yard 13th hole and the second on the par-5, 552-yard 15th.
Watney also had four birdies, including three in a row on the front nine.
He attributed his hot putting to work he did in the offseason, when he tried to simplify his approach and "putt like you did when you were a kid."
"You tell a kid to hit it at that spike mark and he'll do it, so that's what I've been trying to do," Watney said.
Watney is contending for his second US PGA Tourvictory. His first came at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans two years ago.
Mickelson usually fares well in this event, although he has missed the cut here twice in the last three years. Mickelson is the leading money-winner in FBR/Phoenix Open history with $2.45 million earned in 20 years.
Mickelson never recovered from a disastrous five-over 76 in the first round. He had five bogeys and three pars in his morning round on Friday.
This is the first time Mickelson has missed the cut in his season debut in a pro career that began in 1992. But Mickelson said rust wasn't a factor.
"I feel I hit the ball fairly solid," Mickelson said. "I just made some errors here and there."
If recent history is any indication, Mickelson may be right where he needs to be.
Two years ago, he missed the cut here and bounced back to win at Pebble Beach one week later. Last year, he missed the cut at Pebble Beach and won the Northern Trust Open the next week.
The US Tour's next stop is the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines, near Mickelson's home.
"This will give me a few more days to get my game sharp," Mickelson said. "Again, it didn't feel as far off as the score indicated, obviously. But I'll get some good work done this weekend and hopefully come out sharp and ready to play next Thursday in San Diego."
It's hard to tell whether Mickelson's absence will hurt the FBR Open at the gate, where crowds are down. When he missed the cut two years ago, the event drew 93,475 for the final round, a Super Bowl Sunday record.
The FBR Open is the US Tour's most heavily attended event. But attendance has dipped each day this week compared with last year, when the tournament as a whole drew a record 538,356 with the Super Bowl in town.
On Friday, 111,013 attended, down about 9,000 from a year ago.
Mickelson wasn't the only big name to make an early exit. Anthony Kim, the world's No. 9 player, finished at four over and 10th-ranked Camilo Villegas was one over.
SECOND ROUND TOTALS
Par 142 (2 x 72)
133 Nick Watney 70 63
134 Charley Hoffman 66 68, Matt Kuchar 67 67, James Nitties (Aus) 65 69
135 Kenny Perry 72 63, Cameron Beckman 68 67, Webb Simpson 68 67
136 Brian Gay 68 68, Scott Piercy 69 67, Ryan Moore 69 67
137 Rory Sabbatini (Rsa) 72 65, Michael Letzig 70 67, Zach Johnson 71 66, Lucas Glover 65 72, David Berganio Jnr. 66 71, David Toms 69 68, Cliff Kresge 68 69, Kevin Na 67 70, Fredrik Jacobson (Swe) 72 65
138 Brad Adamonis 68 70, Brendon De Jonge 71 67, Vaughn Taylor 69 69, John Senden (Aus) 68 70, Bubba Watson 68 70, Jeff Maggert 70 68, Sean O'Hair 69 69, Rocco Mediate 68 70, Troy Matteson 70 68
139 Jonathan Kaye 68 71, Ted Purdy 71 68, Geoff Ogilvy (Aus) 70 69, Kevin Sutherland 68 71, Parker McLachlin 68 71, Steve Elkington (Aus) 70 69, Rickie Fowler 73 66, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 71 68
140 Kirk Triplett 70 70, Jeff Klauk 74 66, Hunter Mahan 73 67, Chad Campbell 70 70, J J Henry 69 71, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 71 69, Brett Quigley 69 71, Ryan Palmer 73 67, Nicholas Thompson 72 68
141 Brandt Jobe 72 69, Rodney Pampling (Aus) 72 69, Joe Ogilvie 71 70, Steve Flesch 69 72, Gary Woodland 70 71, Woody Austin 69 72, Charlie Wi (Kor) 73 68, Luke Donald (Eng) 76 65, Briny Baird 67 74, Jonathan Byrd 72 69
142 Dudley Hart 71 71, Pat Perez 69 73, Scott McCarron 70 72, John Merrick 72 70, Jeff Overton 70 72, Chris DiMarco 73 69, Ben Curtis 71 71, Mark Wilson 70 72, Kevin Streelman 73 69, Bob Tway 71 71, Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 69 73, Dean Wilson 69 73, Nathan Green (Aus) 73 69, John Rollins 71 71, D.J. Trahan 68 74, Jason Bohn 71 71
MISSED THE CUT
143 Brian Davis (Eng) 73 70, Jerry Kelly 71 72, Paul Azinger 70 73, Harrison Frazar 73 70, Todd Hamilton 74 69, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl) 70 73, Tommy Armour III 72 71, Alex Cejka (Ger) 71 72, Ben Crane 74 69, Justin Leonard 70 73, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 70 73, Tim Petrovic 71 72, Bo Van Pelt 71 72, Camilo Villegas (Col) 72 71, Brandt Snedeker 72 71, Stephen Ames (Can) 70 73
144 Arron Oberholser 73 71, George McNeill 68 76, Michael Allen 70 74, Ryuji Imada (Jpn) 75 69, Tom Lehman 74 70, Jason Gore 69 75
145 Dustin Johnson 72 73, Mike Weir (Can) 73 72, Stewart Cink 73 72, Heath Slocum 69 76, Jesper Parnevik (Swe) 75 70
146 Steve Stricker 74 72, Steve Lowery 71 75, John Mallinger 72 74, Brian Bateman 71 75, Charles Howell III 71 75, J.B. Holmes 70 76, Anthony Kim 73 73, Bill Haas 74 72, Chris Couch 71 75, Johnson Wagner 76 70, Stuart Appleby (Aus) 76 70
147 Steve Marino 73 74, Jeff Quinney 73 74, Wes Short jun 72 75, Marc Turnesa 75 72, Scott Verplank 73 74
148 Derek Fathauer 74 74, Ken Duke 76 72, Angel Cabrera (Arg) 79 69, Fred Couples 74 74, Chez Reavie 73 75, Peter Lonard (Aus) 73 75
149 Tom Kalinowski 75 74, Phil Mickelson 76 73, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 78 71, Tim Herron 71 78, Mark Calcavecchia 74 75, Martin Laird (Sco) 73 76
150 Matt Bettencourt 74 76
151 Scott Hebert 76 75
154 Billy Mayfair 77 77
155 Eric Axley 77 78
160 Dean Vomacka 77 83
Labels: US PGA TOUR, US PRO TOUR
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Friday, January 30, 2009
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