Ross Drummond leads by two shots in

US Senior PGA championship

Could Ross Drummond be on the verge of his biggest ever victory in a long career?
The 6ft 4in, four times Scottish pro champion from Prestwick is leading the field at the halfway stage of the United States Senior PGA Championship at Canterbury Golf Club, Beachwood, Ohio. The Scot has had scores of 70 and 66 to lead by two shots from Jeff Sluman, Scott Hoch, Bernhard Langer, Tom Purtzer and Larry Mize.
“I know it’s going to be difficult and I’m going to be nervous, but you just have to draw from that,” Drummond said after matching the low round of the tournament with a 4-under 66 to grab a clear lead.
“You don’t come to these tournaments just to be down at the bottom end of the field,” he said. “You really come here to try to be successful.”
The 52-year-old Drummond's life on the fringes of fame and fortune were told in the popular 1996 book “Four Iron In the Soul.”
No European player has won the Senior PGA since Jock Hutchison — also a Scot — in 1947.
Drummond was asked, why not him?
“Well, to be honest, I don’t think I even want to contemplate that,” he said. “It would be a dream come true, obviously. It would be an unbelievable achievement and something to be very proud of. But I don’t think I can even contemplate that.”
Drummond’s 24 putts in the second round were the fewest by anyone in the elite 156-player field that includes eight members of the World Golf Hall of Fame and 23 players who have won a total of 41 major championships.
Drummond laboured for 20 years on the European Tour without winning, although his most successful year — 42nd on the Order of Merit — was the year he was profiled in the book by journalist, author and his caddie, Lawrence Donegan. The book has sold thousands of copies in Europe.
“It’s nice when people come up and tell me that they read the book and that they enjoyed the book,” he said.
Then he conceded that he has never read the book since proof reading it prior to publication.In 1996 Drummond finished second to Retief Goosen in the Slaley Hall Northumberland Challenge and third to Jesper Parnevik in the Trophee Lancome.
But within a year he had played so poorly that he lost his tour card. He went through qualifying four times before finally giving up, playing in pro-am tournaments in his homeland for five years before joining the European senior tour.
Although he never won on the European Tour, he did capture titles at the Scottish Professional Championship in 1986, ‘87, ‘89 and ‘90. He has played in 13 British Opens, tying for 31st in 1984 and again in 1995.
Still, he has barely scraped by on his earnings and with almost no sponsorship money. He wears a hat from his home course, Dundonald Links in Ayrshire, but doesn’t receive any money to represent it.
“I would say that I’ve just squeaked by,” said the married father of a 10-year-old daughter, adding that he had a minor sponsor for a couple of years in the mid-1980s. “I’ve never had any endorsements as such that paid big money. Probably from maybe 1986, I funded it purely by myself.”
A friend and traveling companion from Scotland, Duncan Kerr, is carrying his bag.
Among those missing the cut of 7-over 148 were Craig Stadler, Fuzzy Zoeller, Nick Price, Ben Crenshaw, Sandy Lyle and Lanny Wadkins.
Former British Open champion Tom Lehman bounced back with a 68 to stand at 143. Multiple major-winners Tom Watson (72) and Hale Irwin (74) led the pack at 144.
Greg Norman was 2 under on the day when he shanked his third shot over the green and out of bounds on the 616-yard, par-5 16th hole, ending up with a triple bogey. He had to settle for a 72 that left him at 145.
Drummond is ahead of Norman by nine shots as he tries to capture the biggest win of his life.“I feel that my game is good enough to make the cut,” Drummond said. “But I didn’t expect to be in or near the lead.”
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 140 (2 x 70). 6895yd
1. Ross Drummond 70-66--136
2. Jeff Sluman 70-68--138
2. Scott Hoch 66-72--138
2. Bernhard Langer 68-70--138
2. Tom Purtzer 66-72--138
2. Larry Mize 69-69--138
7. Gil Morgan 71-68--139
7. Tom Kite 69-70--139
7. Jay Don Blake 70-69--139
7. Chris Starkjohann 71-68--139
11. Brad Bryant 73-67--140
11. Michael Allen 74-66--140
11. Dan Forsman 70-70--140
11. Mark James 69-71--140
15. Sam Torrance 70-71--141
15. Mark McNulty 72-69--141
15. Russ Cochran 70-71--141
15. Bruce Fleisher 71-70--141
15. John Morse 69-72--141
15. Tim Simpson 70-71--141
15. Joey Sindelar 69-72--141
22. Joe Ozaki 75-67--142
22. John Cook 73-69--142
22. Roger Chapman 74-68--142
22. Keith Fergus 73-69--142
22. Fred Funk 71-71--142
27. Gary Hallberg 69-74--143
27. Don Pooley 74-69--143
27. Wayne Grady 71-72--143
27. Ian Woosnam 71-72--143
27. John Jacobs 70-73--143
27. Dave Stockton 70-73--143
27. Tom Lehman 75-68--143
27. James Blair 71-72--143
35. Dana Quigley 69-75--144
35. Kiyoshi Murota 73-71--144
35. James Mason 71-73--144
35. Tom Watson 72-72--144
35. Gene Jones 75-69--144
35. Hale Irwin 70-74--144
35. Robert Gibbons 71-73--144
42. Greg Norman 73-72--145
42. Mark Wiebe 72-73--145
42. Kirk Hanefeld 75-70--145
42. Lonnie Nielsen 76-69--145
42. Bob Gilder 71-74--145
42. Walter Hall 72-73--145
42. Bill Britton 75-70--145
42. Eduardo Romero 73-72--145
42. Jay Haas 71-74--145
42. Mike Reid 74-71--145
42. Bob Cameron 72-73--145
42. Tom McKnight 72-73--145
54. Allen Doyle 72-74--146
54. Mark O'Meara 76-70--146
54. Mike Goodes 75-71--146
54. Jon Fiedler 72-74--146
54. John Harris 72-74--146
54. Ronnie Black 75-71--146
54. Mike Smith 75-71--146
54. Andy Bean 74-72--146
54. Chip Beck 73-73--146
54. Ken Green 72-74--146
54. Bobby Wadkins 75-71--146
65. Juan Quiros 72-75--147
65. Ron Streck 73-74--147
65. Jim White 74-73--147
65. Jim Woodward 72-75--147
65. Bob Tway 75-72--147
65. Costantino Rocca 72-75--147
65. Fred Gibson 73-74--147
65. Bill Longmuir 77-70--147
65. Vicente Fernandez 76-71--147
65. Jeff Roth 74-73--147
65. Loren Roberts 73-74--147
65. Hal Sutton 71-76--147
65. Tom Wargo 74-73--147
MISSED THE CUT
78. Kong Meshiai 75-73--148
78. Craig Stadler 75-73--148
78. Fuzzy Zoeller 72-76--148
78. Morris Hatalsky 74-74--148
78. Mike San Filippo 74-74--148
78. Luis Carbonetti 75-73--148
78. R.W. Eaks 74-74--148
78. Blaine McCallister 75-73--148
78. David Eger 73-75--148
78. Angel Franco 75-73--148
78. Perry Arthur 73-75--148
78. Domingo Hospital 75-73--148
78. Gary Robison 76-72--148
78. Mark W. Johnson 77-71--148
78. Jimmy Heggarty 77-71--148
78. Tom Jenkins 71-77--148
78. Mike Harwood 73-75--148
78. Jerry Pate 73-75--148
78. Butch Sheehan 70-78--148=
78. Mike Malaska 77-71--148
78. Bruce Vaughan 76-72--148
99. Mouse Bruner 75-74--149
99. John Aubrey 71-78--149
99. Nick Price 74-75--1499
99. Tsukasa Watanabe 79-70--149
99. Jim Sobb 75-74--149
99. Phil Blackmar 74-75--149
99. Ben Crenshaw 73-76--149
99. Sandy Lyle 74-75--149
99. Mike Hulbert 72-77--149
108. Fulton Allem 73-77--150
109. Peter Mitchell 78-73--151
109. Tom Herzan 74-77--151
109. Bill Loeffler 78-73--151
109. Denis Watson 70-81--151
109. Ron Vlosich 79-72--151
109. Mike Cunning 73-78--151
109. Jim Thorpe 77-74--151
109. Mitch Adams 73-78--151
109. Cleve Coldwater 75-76--151
118. Roy Vucinich 79-73--152
118. Lanny Wadkins 72-80--152
118. J.C. Snead 72-80--152
121. Nick Job 77-76--153
121. Brett Upper 77-76--153
121. George Forster 76-77--153
121. Cory George 77-76--153
121. Scott Davis 78-75--153
121. Dan Pohl 77-76--153
121. Fred Holton 74-79--153
121. Giuseppe Cali 77-76--153
121. Robert Thompson 77-76--153
130. Jim Logue 78-76--154
130. Dave Merriman 80-74--154
130. David Edwards 75-79--154
130. Tony Johnstone 73-81--154
130. Steve Thomas 77-77--154
130. Gary Sowinski 76-78--154
130. Curt Byrum 77-77--154
137. Jeff Coston 75-80--155
137. Mike Lawrence 78-77--155
137. Fran Marrello 78-77--155
137. Bob Charles 78-77--155
141. Victor Tortorici 80-77--157
141. Chris Tucker 78-79--157
141. Denis O'Sullivan 81-76--157
144. Nevin Sutcliffe 80-78--158
144. Isao Aoki 81-77--158
144. Mike Borich 83-75--158
147. Pete Oakley 80-79--159
147. Gordon J. Brand 81-78--159
147. Gordon Brand Jr. 84-75--159
150. Jim Lapsley 81-79--160
150. Bob McGrath 81-79--160
150. Mark Hayes 80-80--160
153. Will Frantz 81-80--161
154. Dale Douglass 86-79--165
155. Charles Coody 83-85--168