TEXAS OPEN COURSE DRIES OUT
Walker, Nitties lead into Sunday two-round finale
FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
SAN ANTONIO -- Jimmy Walker and James Nitties got on a roll, and the soaked Valero Texas Open course dried out. Next up is a long two-round finale.
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PGATOUR.COM: Complete coverage of the Valero Texas Open
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Walker and Nitties shot 5-under 67s on Saturday for a share of the lead at seven under par with Brett Wetterich (68) and Matt Jones (71) at TPC San Antonio, where the Oaks Course soaked up a drenching that will make for a 36-hole finish today.
Muck and mud squished under the morning gallery after more than three inches of rain washed out play on Friday. But fairways drained and greens stayed firm, drawing praise from some in a field that has grumbled about the new Greg Norman-designed lay-out.
"The greens are what they are," said Wetterich, who birdied his final three holes. "You're going to gripe about it. I think that's more advantage for other people that aren't and just kind of go with the flow."
Tour rookie Garth Mulroy (67) was a stroke back along with Charley Hoffman (70), James Driscoll (68), J.B. Holmes (70), Pat Perez (66), Tim Petrovic (68) and Aron Price (68). Ernie Els, a two-time winner this year, was two shots back at 5 under after a 67.
"Hoping for Texas winds tomorrow," Els said. "It's going to be a long day but I'll be up for it."
PGA Tour officials hadn't ruled out stretching the tournament into Monday if storms delayed the tournament again. The National Weather Service called for a 40 percent chance of rain on Sunday.
Walker, who missed the cut in three of his last four tournaments since April, grabbed a share of the lead on a course he knows better than most.
The San Antonio resident played TPC San Antonio -- where the Texas Open moved this spring after 15 years at La Cantera Golf Club -- before most anyone last winter. That familiarity started paying off.
After starting the round four back, Walker birdied three holes on the front nine and another three on the back leg. He used a sand wedge to put a 111-yard approach about seven feet from the cup on the par-4 11th, then sank the putt for birdie.
"I've gotten way behind and it's hard to claw your way back from the back of the pack," Walker said. "I've been doing it but it's not fun. It's nice to get out and make the cut, you know, fairly easy."
Els also began a push. The current money and FedExCup points leader, who also is the only player in the field ranked in the top 10, missed the cut last week at The Players Championship while working through a bad swing.
Els arrived in Texas focused on releasing his club earlier and not being so "handsy through the hitting area." Though still feeling conservative with his drivers, Els was on target with his driver.
On the par-5 second, Els got out of a fairway bunker with a 5-iron before sinking a 17-footer for one of his five birdies. He hit par on every other hole.
"I felt one more tournament could really do it for me, and although it didn't happen in the first round, I feel it's really coming around now," Els said.
Vijay Singh, who played with Els and is arguably the other biggest name in the tournament, shot for par in the second round and made the cut at 1 over. Sergio Garcia shot a 68 and was four strokes back.
Zach Johnson, the two-time defending tournament champion, couldn't erase the damage from his disastrous opening-round 80. He missed the cut at 4 over.
Johnson beat Driscoll in a sudden-death play-off at this tournament a year ago, and Driscoll on Saturday blew his chance for a five-way tie for first with a bogey on his final hole. His approach missed the green on the par-4 ninth, and his 8-foot putt for par missed by 2 feet.
No. 9 also cost Jones sole possession of the lead.
Jones, who led after the opening round, birdied on the par-5 eighth to reach 8 under with one hole to go. But he drove his drive on No. 9 into the tall grass and rocks to the right of fairway, and couldn't recover to make par.
Scott Piercy began the round 3 over but birdied six holes on the front nine and shot a 64 for the day's best round. The 31-year-old was two shots back, alongside Ernie Els and Englishman Greg Owen among others..
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 144 (2x72)
137 Jimmy Walker 70 67, Brett Wetterich 69 68, James Nitties (Aus) 70 67, Matthew Jones (Aus) 66 71
138 Pat Perez 72 66, J.B. Holmes 68 70, Aron Price (Aus) 70 68, Charley Hoffman 68 70, Garth Mulroy (Rsa) 71 67, Tim Petrovic 70 68, James Driscoll 70 68
139 Spencer Levin 70 69, Joe Durant 69 70, Ernie Els (Rsa) 72 67, Garrett Willis 71 68, Scott Piercy 75 64, Greg Owen (Eng) 71 68, Cameron Percy (Aus) 71 68
140 Fredrik Jacobson (Swe) 71 69, Paul Stankowski 67 73, Robert Damron 72 68
141 Adam Scott (Aus) 71 70, Bill Lunde 72 69, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 73 68, David Duval 75 66, Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 75 66, Richard S Johnson (Swe) 73 68, Arjun Atwal (Ind) 69 72, Bo Van Pelt 72 69, Tom Gillis 71 70, Cameron Tringale 71 70, Matt Weibring 68 73
142 Jeff Gove 74 68, Michael Bradley 71 71, Steve Flesch 69 73, Ted Purdy 70 72, Mathias Gronberg (Swe) 70 72, Charlie Wi (Kor) 72 70, Chris Tidland 72 70, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 70 72, Jay Williamson 73 69
143 Mark Hensby (Aus) 72 71, Chez Reavie 73 70, Steve Elkington (Aus) 72 71, Jeff Burns 72 71, Craig Barlow 72 71, Marc Leishman (Aus) 70 73, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 74 69, Jason Gore 73 70
144 Charles Warren 71 73, Kris Blanks 77 67, Tom Byrum 70 74, Martin Flores 72 72, Vaughn Taylor 72 72, Harrison Frazar 73 71, Michael Connell 72 72, Chris Wilson 72 72, John Daly 77 67, Chad Campbell 74 70, Guy Boros 76 68, Ryan Palmer 75 69, Troy Matteson 72 72, Frank Lickliter II 75 69, Josh Teater 73 71
145 Kent Jones 70 75, Michael Letzig 70 75, Tim Herron 73 72, Omar Uresti 72 73, Billy Mayfair 72 73, Lee Janzen 72 73, Steve Lowery 68 77, Brenden Pappas (Rsa) 76 69, Cliff Kresge 72 73, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl) 73 72, Justin Leonard 76 69, Vijay Singh (Fij) 73 72, John Morse 73 72
MISSED THE CUT
146 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 76 70, Chris Riley 75 71, Chris Stroud 71 75, Ryan Baca 73 73, Marco Dawson 76 70, Mark Brooks 72 74, Vance Veazey 76 70, Eric Axley 74 72, Gary Woodland 75 71, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 70 76, Jay Delsing 78 68, Brett Quigley 73 73, Robin Freeman 75 71, Rocco Mediate 71 75
147 Robert Gamez 74 73, Kevin Stadler 77 70, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 74 73, Carlos Franco (Par) 75 72, Todd Hamilton 75 72, Roger Tambellini 74 73, Blake Adams 78 69
148 Michael Sim (Sco) 76 72, Zach Johnson 80 68, Steve Wheatcroft 71 77, Shaun Micheel 73 75, Jim Carter 77 71, Tim Thelen 76 72, Jeff Maggert 72 76, Paul Goydos 73 75, Cameron Beckman 77 71, Craig Bowden 76 72, Glen Day 79 69, Johnson Wagner 78 70, Briny Baird 74 74, Spike McRoy 72 76, Rich Barcelo 76 72
149 Kirk Triplett 75 74, John Rollins 73 76, Dean Wilson 79 70, Bobby Gates 72 77, John Mallinger 74 75, J.L. Lewis 75 74, Tom Pernice junior 78 71, Michael Clark II 75 74
150 Derek Tolan 76 74, Matt Bettencourt 76 74, Bob Estes 77 73, Justin Bolli 77 73, Jim McGovern 79 71, Dicky Pride 74 76, Nicholas Thompson 76 74, Phil Tataurangi (Nzl) 72 78, Henrik Bjornstad (Nor) 74 76, Mark Wilson 77 73, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 75 75, J J Henry 78 72, Gene Williams 78 72, John Huston 77 73, Troy Merritt 74 76, Skip Kendall 79 71
151 David Lutterus (Rsa) 77 74, Brian Stuard 73 78, Grant Waite (Nzl) 79 72, Brian Bateman 76 75
152 Scott McCarron 76 76, Len Mattiace 76 76, Kevin Johnson 74 78
153 Thomas Kearney 79 74, Joe Ogilvie 75 78, Jerod Turner 76 77
155 Robert Garrigus 74 81, Graham Delaet (Can) 80 75
160 Brent Delahoussaye 80 80, John C. Little II 82 78
DQ: 148 Chris DiMarco 74 74, 163 Mike Standly 76 87
FROM THE PGATOUR.COM WEBSITE
SAN ANTONIO -- Jimmy Walker and James Nitties got on a roll, and the soaked Valero Texas Open course dried out. Next up is a long two-round finale.
===============================================
PGATOUR.COM: Complete coverage of the Valero Texas Open
===============================================
Walker and Nitties shot 5-under 67s on Saturday for a share of the lead at seven under par with Brett Wetterich (68) and Matt Jones (71) at TPC San Antonio, where the Oaks Course soaked up a drenching that will make for a 36-hole finish today.
Muck and mud squished under the morning gallery after more than three inches of rain washed out play on Friday. But fairways drained and greens stayed firm, drawing praise from some in a field that has grumbled about the new Greg Norman-designed lay-out.
"The greens are what they are," said Wetterich, who birdied his final three holes. "You're going to gripe about it. I think that's more advantage for other people that aren't and just kind of go with the flow."
Tour rookie Garth Mulroy (67) was a stroke back along with Charley Hoffman (70), James Driscoll (68), J.B. Holmes (70), Pat Perez (66), Tim Petrovic (68) and Aron Price (68). Ernie Els, a two-time winner this year, was two shots back at 5 under after a 67.
"Hoping for Texas winds tomorrow," Els said. "It's going to be a long day but I'll be up for it."
PGA Tour officials hadn't ruled out stretching the tournament into Monday if storms delayed the tournament again. The National Weather Service called for a 40 percent chance of rain on Sunday.
Walker, who missed the cut in three of his last four tournaments since April, grabbed a share of the lead on a course he knows better than most.
The San Antonio resident played TPC San Antonio -- where the Texas Open moved this spring after 15 years at La Cantera Golf Club -- before most anyone last winter. That familiarity started paying off.
After starting the round four back, Walker birdied three holes on the front nine and another three on the back leg. He used a sand wedge to put a 111-yard approach about seven feet from the cup on the par-4 11th, then sank the putt for birdie.
"I've gotten way behind and it's hard to claw your way back from the back of the pack," Walker said. "I've been doing it but it's not fun. It's nice to get out and make the cut, you know, fairly easy."
Els also began a push. The current money and FedExCup points leader, who also is the only player in the field ranked in the top 10, missed the cut last week at The Players Championship while working through a bad swing.
Els arrived in Texas focused on releasing his club earlier and not being so "handsy through the hitting area." Though still feeling conservative with his drivers, Els was on target with his driver.
On the par-5 second, Els got out of a fairway bunker with a 5-iron before sinking a 17-footer for one of his five birdies. He hit par on every other hole.
"I felt one more tournament could really do it for me, and although it didn't happen in the first round, I feel it's really coming around now," Els said.
Vijay Singh, who played with Els and is arguably the other biggest name in the tournament, shot for par in the second round and made the cut at 1 over. Sergio Garcia shot a 68 and was four strokes back.
Zach Johnson, the two-time defending tournament champion, couldn't erase the damage from his disastrous opening-round 80. He missed the cut at 4 over.
Johnson beat Driscoll in a sudden-death play-off at this tournament a year ago, and Driscoll on Saturday blew his chance for a five-way tie for first with a bogey on his final hole. His approach missed the green on the par-4 ninth, and his 8-foot putt for par missed by 2 feet.
No. 9 also cost Jones sole possession of the lead.
Jones, who led after the opening round, birdied on the par-5 eighth to reach 8 under with one hole to go. But he drove his drive on No. 9 into the tall grass and rocks to the right of fairway, and couldn't recover to make par.
Scott Piercy began the round 3 over but birdied six holes on the front nine and shot a 64 for the day's best round. The 31-year-old was two shots back, alongside Ernie Els and Englishman Greg Owen among others..
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS
Par 144 (2x72)
137 Jimmy Walker 70 67, Brett Wetterich 69 68, James Nitties (Aus) 70 67, Matthew Jones (Aus) 66 71
138 Pat Perez 72 66, J.B. Holmes 68 70, Aron Price (Aus) 70 68, Charley Hoffman 68 70, Garth Mulroy (Rsa) 71 67, Tim Petrovic 70 68, James Driscoll 70 68
139 Spencer Levin 70 69, Joe Durant 69 70, Ernie Els (Rsa) 72 67, Garrett Willis 71 68, Scott Piercy 75 64, Greg Owen (Eng) 71 68, Cameron Percy (Aus) 71 68
140 Fredrik Jacobson (Swe) 71 69, Paul Stankowski 67 73, Robert Damron 72 68
141 Adam Scott (Aus) 71 70, Bill Lunde 72 69, Sergio Garcia (Spa) 73 68, David Duval 75 66, Aaron Baddeley (Aus) 75 66, Richard S Johnson (Swe) 73 68, Arjun Atwal (Ind) 69 72, Bo Van Pelt 72 69, Tom Gillis 71 70, Cameron Tringale 71 70, Matt Weibring 68 73
142 Jeff Gove 74 68, Michael Bradley 71 71, Steve Flesch 69 73, Ted Purdy 70 72, Mathias Gronberg (Swe) 70 72, Charlie Wi (Kor) 72 70, Chris Tidland 72 70, Jarrod Lyle (Aus) 70 72, Jay Williamson 73 69
143 Mark Hensby (Aus) 72 71, Chez Reavie 73 70, Steve Elkington (Aus) 72 71, Jeff Burns 72 71, Craig Barlow 72 71, Marc Leishman (Aus) 70 73, Carl Pettersson (Swe) 74 69, Jason Gore 73 70
144 Charles Warren 71 73, Kris Blanks 77 67, Tom Byrum 70 74, Martin Flores 72 72, Vaughn Taylor 72 72, Harrison Frazar 73 71, Michael Connell 72 72, Chris Wilson 72 72, John Daly 77 67, Chad Campbell 74 70, Guy Boros 76 68, Ryan Palmer 75 69, Troy Matteson 72 72, Frank Lickliter II 75 69, Josh Teater 73 71
145 Kent Jones 70 75, Michael Letzig 70 75, Tim Herron 73 72, Omar Uresti 72 73, Billy Mayfair 72 73, Lee Janzen 72 73, Steve Lowery 68 77, Brenden Pappas (Rsa) 76 69, Cliff Kresge 72 73, Tim Wilkinson (Nzl) 73 72, Justin Leonard 76 69, Vijay Singh (Fij) 73 72, John Morse 73 72
MISSED THE CUT
146 Jeev Milkha Singh (Ind) 76 70, Chris Riley 75 71, Chris Stroud 71 75, Ryan Baca 73 73, Marco Dawson 76 70, Mark Brooks 72 74, Vance Veazey 76 70, Eric Axley 74 72, Gary Woodland 75 71, Daniel Chopra (Swe) 70 76, Jay Delsing 78 68, Brett Quigley 73 73, Robin Freeman 75 71, Rocco Mediate 71 75
147 Robert Gamez 74 73, Kevin Stadler 77 70, Mathew Goggin (Aus) 74 73, Carlos Franco (Par) 75 72, Todd Hamilton 75 72, Roger Tambellini 74 73, Blake Adams 78 69
148 Michael Sim (Sco) 76 72, Zach Johnson 80 68, Steve Wheatcroft 71 77, Shaun Micheel 73 75, Jim Carter 77 71, Tim Thelen 76 72, Jeff Maggert 72 76, Paul Goydos 73 75, Cameron Beckman 77 71, Craig Bowden 76 72, Glen Day 79 69, Johnson Wagner 78 70, Briny Baird 74 74, Spike McRoy 72 76, Rich Barcelo 76 72
149 Kirk Triplett 75 74, John Rollins 73 76, Dean Wilson 79 70, Bobby Gates 72 77, John Mallinger 74 75, J.L. Lewis 75 74, Tom Pernice junior 78 71, Michael Clark II 75 74
150 Derek Tolan 76 74, Matt Bettencourt 76 74, Bob Estes 77 73, Justin Bolli 77 73, Jim McGovern 79 71, Dicky Pride 74 76, Nicholas Thompson 76 74, Phil Tataurangi (Nzl) 72 78, Henrik Bjornstad (Nor) 74 76, Mark Wilson 77 73, Andrew McLardy (Rsa) 75 75, J J Henry 78 72, Gene Williams 78 72, John Huston 77 73, Troy Merritt 74 76, Skip Kendall 79 71
151 David Lutterus (Rsa) 77 74, Brian Stuard 73 78, Grant Waite (Nzl) 79 72, Brian Bateman 76 75
152 Scott McCarron 76 76, Len Mattiace 76 76, Kevin Johnson 74 78
153 Thomas Kearney 79 74, Joe Ogilvie 75 78, Jerod Turner 76 77
155 Robert Garrigus 74 81, Graham Delaet (Can) 80 75
160 Brent Delahoussaye 80 80, John C. Little II 82 78
DQ: 148 Chris DiMarco 74 74, 163 Mike Standly 76 87
Labels: US PGA TOUR, US PRO TOUR
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Sunday, May 16, 2010
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