Saturday, June 05, 2010

European men's mid-amateur champion Scoreboard
Morfontaine Golf Club, France
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
210 Francois Illouz (France) 72 69 69, Jacobo Cestino (Spain) 69 70 71, Mark Wharton (England) 68 71 71, Ja\mie Miller (England) 69 69 72 (Illouz won the play-off at the third extra hole, having birdied each of them!)
211 John Kemp (England0 70 68 73 (5th).
212 Richard Heath (Australia) 74 69 69 (6th)
213 Malcolm Reid (Scotland) 74 68 71 (7th)
Total field of 144 players; 99 of whom survived the 36-hole cut.

+Malcom Reid is a member at Royal Ascot Golf Club and is also captain of Berks, Bucks and Oxon Golf Union.

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Gordon Brand junior goes six shots clear in Jersey Seniors

FROM THE EUROPEAN SENIORS TOUR WEBSITE
Former Ryder Cup player Gordon Brand junior will take a commanding six-stroke lead into the final round of the Matrix Jersey Classic after firing a superb six under par 66 at La Moye Golf Club.
The Scot is ideally placed to capture his maiden European Senior Tour title after carding an eagle and five birdies to add to his opening round 63, which was just one stroke off the course record he shot in 1986.
Brand Jnr began the day with a three stroke advantage and quickly hit his stride with a hat-trick of birdies starting on the second hole. His only bogey of the day followed on the fifth hole when fog swept over the links at La Moye and the 51 year old found the bushes.
A 50 minute delay while the mist cleared gave him a chance to mull over that mistake and he responded in the best possible fashion with an eagle three on the sixth hole before adding two more birdies on the 16th and 17th holes.
The eight-time European Tour winner finished on 15 under par 129, six strokes clear of Australian Graham Banister who posted a 67 – his lowest Senior Tour round.
“It was another good round even though I didn’t play quite as well as yesterday,” said Brand Jnr. “I started nice and solid with a nice birdie on the second, with a pitch and putt from the front edge.
“Then I knocked a lovely seven iron in on the third and holed from 18ft for birdie and on the fourth hole I missed the green to the right and chipped in, so I had a great start.
“We were then forced to play on five when there was fog and I hit a shot where I couldnt see where it went and it ended in the bushes. But that was my only blemish, apart from three putting when I had an eagle chance on the 11th.
“I hit back with an eagle after the restart and then tidied up with a couple more birdies on the back nine so it was another good day. It was nice and solid and I did the right things and the right time.”
Brand Jnr goes into the final round on the Channel Island trying to capture his first title since joining the Senior Tour having twice finished runner up.
On both occasions he lost in a play-off, including to his namesake Gordon J Brand on his debut in The De Vere Collection PGA Seniors Championship in 2008, but the two-time Ryder Cup player intends to play the deciding 18 holes in exactly the same manner he has tackled the first two rounds.
“I will approach tomorrow just the way I did today,” he said. “Simple as that. I have no formula for treating tomorrow any different. Six shots is a good lead though – you couldn’t ask for much more. Hopefully I will sleep tonight.
“I feel comfortable out there – I’m 15 under after two days so perhaps more than comfortable. I’ve got some history with this course after the four eagles and course record 62 in 1986 so it seems to sit well with me. It’s not changed too much since then.”
Leading the chasing pack will be Banister, who is looking for another cause to celebrate having married his partner Jill last week.
The 53 year old, who gained his European Senior Tour card at last November’s Qualifying School, posted seven birdies and two bogeys to move to nine under par for the tournament.
“I had 32 putts but I was near perfect from tee to green,” he said. “I’ve been working hard on my driving with my coach Josh Points in America who looks after a couple of PGA Tour players.
“He changed a couple of things and straightened my path as my driving was a little inside out. It is important to drive well on a course like this and I did that.”
Former PGA Championship winner Andrew Oldcorn, who finished tied eighth in last week’s US Senior PGA Championship, is a shot further back in a group of four players on eight under par after a 68. He is joined in a share of third by American Mike Cunning, Australia David Merriman and South African Bobby Lincoln.
SECOND ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 144 (2x72)
BRAND JNR, Gordon  63 66 - - 129
BANISTER, Graham  68 67 - - 135
CUNNING, Mike  69 67 - - 136
MERRIMAN, David 71 65 - - 136
LINCOLN, Bobby 68 68 - - 136
OLDCORN, Andrew  68 68 - - 136
SPURGEON, Kevin 66 71 - - 137
FOWLER, Peter 71 66 - - 137
BOYD, Bob 72 65 - - 137
CAMERON, Bob 70 68 - - 138
MASON, Carl  70 68 - - 138
JOHNSTONE, Tony 68 70 - - 138
FARRY, Marc 71 68 - - 139
FRANCO, Angel 71 68 - - 139
RYALL, George  69 70 - - 139
LONGMUIR, Bill  75 65 - - 140
DURNIAN, Denis 70 71 - - 141
HOSPITAL, Domingo  71 70 - - 141
RUANGKIT, Boonchu  69 72 - - 141
HARRISON, John  68 73 - - 141
RHODES, Jim  72 69 - - 141
DRUMMOND, Ross 72 69 - - 141
JOB, Nick 71 70 - - 141
SMYTH, Des 73 68 - - 141
CARBONETTI, Luis  72 69 - - 141
CHILLAS, John 71 71 - - 142
Selected other scores:
HORTON, Tommy  73 74 - - 147
MANN, Fraser 75 74 - - 149
MILLER, Mike 80 69 - - 149
GRAY, Martin 74 75 - - 149
RUSSELL, David J  76 73 - - 149

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EUROPEAN TOUR REPORT, SCORES

Marcel Siem leads Celtic Manor Wales Open by three shots

FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
A day of some spectacular scoring in the Wales Open at Celtic Manor - so different to the second round - ended with German Marcel Siem on track to become the third successive shock winner of the title.
Twelve months after world number 377 Jeppe Huldahl triumphed and two years after it was number 164 Scott Strange, the game's 294th-ranked player had a bogey-free 66 to reach 11 under par 202.
Siem, a pony-tailed 29-year-old who has never played a major and whose only previous European Tour victory came six years ago, leads by three from Dane Thomas Bjorn and Spaniard Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano.
But it was the trio one stroke further back who turned on the most style.
Scotland's Stephen Gallacher set the ball rolling, smashing the course record by two with an eight under par 63 that moved him from 35th to fourth with 18 holes to go (SCROLL DOWN FOR A LONGER STORY ABOUT GALLACHER'S ROUND).
Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell joined him on seven under with a 64 and then England's Simon Dyson, seventh in the race for Ryder Cup places, shot 65 to be on the same mark.
THIRD-ROUND SCOREBOARD
Par 213 (3x71)
202 Marcel Siem (Ger) 69 67 66
205 Thomas Bjorn (Den) 69 68 68, Gonzalo Fdez-Castano (Spa) 68 71 66
206 Graeme McDowell 72 70 64, Stephen Gallacher 70 73 63, Simon Dyson 71 70 65
207 James Kingston (Rsa) 70 71 66, Soren Hansen (Den) 68 70 69, Richard McEvoy 67 71 69, Maarten Lafeber (Ned) 70 68 69
208 Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spa) 70 68 70, Niclas Fasth (Swe) 69 72 67, Edoardo Molinari (Ita) 67 71 70
209 Robert Rock 68 71 70, Richie Ramsay 68 72 69, Luke Donald 75 65 69
210 Jarmo Sandelin (Swe) 71 69 70, Rhys Davies 67 73 70, David Lynn 72 72 66, Jose Manuel Lara (Spa) 69 70 71
211 Francesco Molinari (Ita) 70 73 68, Gary Boyd 71 70 70, Chris Wood 65 76 70, Damien McGrane 69 76 66, Andrew Dodt (Aus) 66 70 75, Peter Lawrie 72 67 72, Bradley Dredge 66 73 72, Raphael Jacquelin (Fra) 67 73 71
212 Patrik Sjoland (Swe) 72 72 68, Shane Lowry 70 73 69, Alvaro Quiros (Spa) 71 72 69
213 Danny Lee (Nzl) 68 75 70, Jeppe Huldahl (Den) 72 71 70, Peter Whiteford 72 72 69, Alastair Forsyth 71 73 69, Nicolas Colsaerts (Bel) 74 71 68, Martin Kaymer (Ger) 70 74 69, Darren Clarke 69 71 73, Ross McGowan 70 73 70
214 Soren Kjeldsen (Den) 72 72 70, Louis Oosthuizen (Rsa) 72 72 70, James Ruth 70 74 70
215 Anton Haig (Rsa) 72 71 72, Scott Hend (Aus) 71 72 72, Eirik Tage Johansen (Nor) 68 74 73, Gareth Maybin 69 73 73
216 Richard Bland 74 71 71, Garry Houston 73 71 72, Colin Montgomerie 70 70 76, Oliver Wilson 70 71 75, Peter Hedblom (Swe) 73 72 71, Ricardo Gonzalez (Arg) 73 72 71, Gregory Bourdy (Fra) 72 72 72, Ignacio Garrido (Spa) 72 71 73, Benjamin Hebert (Fra) 73 71 72, Simon Thornton 68 75 73
217 Marc Warren 71 71 75, Alexander Noren (Swe) 70 74 73, Phillip Price 70 74 73, Pablo Martin (Spa) 71 73 73, Pablo Larrazabal (Spa) 69 76 72
219 Chris Gane 70 75 74, Jamie Donaldson 71 72 76, Julien Guerrier (Fra) 71 72 76, Barry Lane 71 72 76
220 Marco Ruiz (Par) 71 71 78, Benn Barham 70 72 78, Clodomiro Carranza (Arg) 70 75 75, Mark Foster 72 73 75, Oliver Fisher 74 68 78, Graeme Storm 74 71 75
222 Julien Quesne (Fra) 71 73 78
223 Francois Delamontagne (Fra) 68 74 81
224 Thomas Aiken (Rsa) 72 71 81

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Scott Jamieson joint 8th with a round to go in Challenge Tour event

By SARAH GWYNN
European Challenge Tour Press Officer
Austrian Thomas Feyrsinger will take a one shot lead into the final day of the Karnten Golf Open by Markus Brier Foundation after carding a one under par 71 for a third-round ttotal of 11under-par 205 in Austria.
Glasgow's Scott Jamieson is in joint eighth place on 209 after a 70
Feyrsinger led by one at the start of the day and was able to maintain his advantage as several players who were just behind him overnight struggled with the breezy conditions and tricky pin positions.
Dutchman Floris De Vries needed a superb finish to post a 71 and move to ten under, while tournament host Markus Brier fell away from the top of the leaderboard with a two over par 74 leaving him at seven under overall. Australian Matthew Zions capitalised, posting an impressive seven under par 65 to join De Vries at ten under, and Spaniard Jorge Campillo shot a 67 – helped by a hole in one at the par three 15th – to go to nine under with Swede Leif Westerberg.
Feyrsinger admitted his score would have been better if he had holed three good birdie chances, but was satisfied nonetheless.
“I played really well again,” he said. “I only missed two greens all day, but it was a little windier so I couldn’t get as close to the pin as the other two rounds. I left a few chances out there but overall I’m very happy.
“It’s good to be going into the final round as the leader and I’m just going to stay relaxed and enjoy it. I’ve worked so hard on my game to get to this point and I’m feeling so confident right now so I have no reason to be nervous.”
De Vries also blamed poor putting for not shooting lower, but was happy to be only one shot off Ferysinger’s lead after birdies at the 14th, 16th, 17th and 18th.
“I missed five putts from three feet or closer,” said De Vries, who won the Mugello Tuscany Open a fortnight ago. “This hardly ever happens once so for it to happen so many times today is very annoying. I played really well apart from that. I’m happy to still be up there because nobody at the top did anything fantastic today, but I can’t help but think that I would have a good lead if I had just holed those short putts.”
Zions is confident he can win his maiden Challenge Tour title after finding some form with the putter. “I started well with birdies at the first, third and fifth and had a good up-and-down at the sixth,” he said. “Then I had another great up-and-down for birdie at the seventh, and on the back nine I got a bit of momentum going with four in a row from the 14th. I finished well too by holing an eight footer for par.
“Everything has felt better and better each day. It’s a course which really suits my game. You have to drive the ball well and it really respects good golf. And there were some tricky pins out there today. I drove the ball well and the putter really came to life today.
“There’s something about this course...I’ve just got to keep in the same frame of mind. I’m feeling very calm and I’m due for a win. It would be great to win here.”
Campillo said: “I was getting very impatient before the hole in one because I was not holing anything. I just need to be a little bit more consistent with the putter and it will be better. I’ll have a day when I’m holing a lot of putts but then the next day I don’t. Hopefully it will be another good day tomorrow. Can I win? If I play as well as today, why not?”
THIRD-ROUND TOTALS
Par 216 (3x72)
205 T Feyrsinger (Aut) 67 67 71,
206 M Zions (Aus) 70 71 65, F De Vries (Ned) 68 67 71,
207 J Campillo (Esp) 68 72 67, L Claverie (Esp) 68 68 71, L Westerberg (Swe) 70 68 69,
208 B Ritthammer (Ger) 67 71 70,
209 S Jamieson (Sco) 70 69 70, E Dubois (Fra) 71 68 70, A Sjöstrand (Swe) 65 71 73, T Olesen (Den) 71 71 67, N Meitinger (Ger) 67 69 73, M Brier (Aut) 67 68 74, A Bruschi (Ita) 70 70 69, M Wiegele (Aut) 62 76 71,
210 J Sjöholm (Swe) 68 70 72, D Denison (Eng) 73 66 71, A Haindl (RSA) 72 68 70, K Eriksson (Swe) 75 67 68, R Steiner (Aut) 71 66 73, G Molteni (Ita) 71 68 71, J Zapata (Arg) 69 72 69,
211 M Higley (Eng) 69 72 70, J McLean (Aus) 70 68 73, J Caldwell (Nir) 68 71 72, A Maestroni (Ita) 69 70 72, G Davies (Eng) 69 70 72,
212 E Canonica (Ita) 72 67 73, A Bossert (Sui) 70 71 71, M Cobo (Esp) 71 69 72, A Johnston (Eng) 68 71 73, R Kind (Ned) 71 70 71, M Baldwin (Eng) 70 73 69, D Whitnell (Eng) 70 72 70, M Thorp (Nor) 72 68 72,
213 L Jensen (Den) 75 66 72, J Larsen (Nor) 73 70 70, D Vanegas (Col) 70 72 71, A Gee (Eng) 71 71 71, A Kaleka (Fra) 72 71 70, M Moser (Aut) 72 71 70, T Whitehouse (Eng) 70 70 73,
214 J Arruti (Esp) 70 72 72, V Covello (USA) 70 71 73, C Ford (Eng) 70 73 71, A Snobeck (Fra) 72 69 73, J Axgren (Swe) 73 70 71, H Bacher (Aut) 69 73 72, J Xanthopoulos (Fra) 70 72 72,
215 R Thuillier (Fra) 74 68 73, G Shaw (Nir) 67 76 72, C Macaulay (Sco) 70 70 75, L Kennedy (Eng) 70 73 72,
216 L Moolman (RSA) 69 72 75, F Calmels (Fra) 70 68 78, E Ramsay (Sco) 74 68 74, P Golding (Eng) 75 67 74,
217 P Del Grosso (Arg) 71 71 75, J Colomo (Esp) 70 72 75,
218 J Maurer (Aut) 72 71 75,
219 M Mills (Eng) 68 74 77, V Riu (Fra) 70 71 78, J Abbate (Arg) 74 69 76,
220 G Woodman (Eng) 73 68 79,

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St Andrews Links Trophy Scoreboard
FIRST TWO ROUNDS OVER JUBILEE COURSE
LAST TWO ROUNDS (Sunday) OVER OLD COURSE
SECOND-ROUND TOTALS (before end of play)
Par 144 (2x72)
+40 players with two-round totals of 144 or better qualified for Sunday's final two rounds.
138 Ben Westgate (Wales)  67 71, Daniel Lokke (Denmark) 66 72, Matthew Southgate (England) 68 70.
139 Tom Lewis (England) 69 70.
140 Stiggy Hodgson (England) 69 71, Sam Claridge (England) 72 68, Philip McLean (Scotland) 70 70, Chris Lloyd (England) 72 68, Billy Hemstock (England) 70 70, Patricio Salem (Peru) 67 73, Adrian Otaegui (Spain) 72 68, Ben Campbell (NZ) 70 70.
141 Eddie Peppperell (England) 70 71, Michael Stewart (Scotland) 73 68, David Coupland (England).
Selected scores:
142 Ross Bell (Scotland) 70 72, Scott Crichton (Scotland) 72 70.
143 James White (Lundin) 71 72.
144 Jordan Findlay (Scotland) 73 71, Matthew Clark (Scotland) 71 73.
MISSED THE CUT
145 Greg Paterson (Scotland) 69 76, Mark Halliday (Scotland) 73 72, Kris Nicol  (Scotland) 72 73, Steven McEwan (Scotland) 74 71.
146 Keith Hamilton (Scotland) 73 73, Ross Kellett (Scotland) 74 72.
147 Mark Bookless (Scotland) 72 75, Paul Moultrie (Scotland) 73 74, Chris Harkins (Scotland) 74 73.
148 Ross Coull (Scotland) 74 74, Brian Soutar (Scotland) 74 74, Bobby Rushford (Scotland) 73 75.
149 Gordon Yates (Scotland) 76 73, Stephen Speirs (Scotland) 72 77, Daniel Sommerville (Scotland) 77 72.
150 Fraser Fotheringham (Scotland) 78 72.

LEADING TEE TIMES OVER THE OLD COURSE ON SUNDAY
9.26 and 14.26: Sam Claridge (140) and Chris Lloyd (140).
9.34 and 14.34: Stiggy Hodgson (140) and Philip McLean (140).
9.42 and 14.42: Tom Lewis (139) and Daniel Lokke (138).
9.50 and 14.50: Ben Westgate (138) and Matthew Southgate (138).

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Gavin Dear in joint 16th place after up and down 69 at Disneyland

Gavin Dear had a little bit of everything in a round of two-under-par 69 which sees him go into Sunday's fourth and final round of the Alps Tour event at Golf de Disneyland, the Open Intenational d'Ile de France, in joint 16th place on five-under-par 208.
The Murrayshall House Hotel player had an eagle 3 at the 519yd sixth and birdies at the long first, sevnth, nith, 11th, long 14th and 17th. But Dear also had a double bogey 6 at the 16th and single shots shed to par at the third, fourth, fifth and 12th.
Leading the field on 13-under-par 200 are two Italians, Paolo Terrini (67-68-65) and Nunzio Daniele Lombardi (67-66-67).
Alan Birhan (France) is on his own in third place on 202 with scores of 68, 66 and 68.
Three players sharing fourth place on 204 are Julian Van Hauwe (France) (69-70-65), Switzerland's Jann Schmidt (67-70-67) and England's Matthew Cryer (69-67-68).

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Stephen Gallacher sets Celtic Manor course record with a 63


FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WEBSITE
Scotland's Stephen Gallacher broke The Celtic Manor Resort Twenty Ten Course record by two with a stunning eight under par 63 in the third round of The Celtic Manor Wales Open today.
Seven off the lead at the start of the day, the nephew of former Ryder Cup Captain Bernard followed six birdies with a brilliant closing eagle, hitting a 242 yard rescue club to within three feet of the flag.
The performance lifted him all the way into a share of the lead with Marcel Siem, but the German then inched ahead again with a second birdie of the day on the 433 yard fifth.
Gallacher was not the only one who charged into contention. Ulsterman Graeme McDowell turned in 31, and with three to play was six under and joint third with England's Robert Rock.
This time last year 35 year old Gallacher was fighting the viral infection sarcoidosis and even had a biopsy to test for cancer.
Steroid treatment brought a cure, but he confesses he has felt "absolutely shattered" this week."I've been knackered, but I've just got a wee bit of belief in myself," he said.
The former Dunhill Links champion returned to The European Tour Qualifying School last November, but has no such worries this season after finishing fourth at the BMW PGA Championship two weeks ago.
"Wentworth was big - that took the pressure off the card for next year and meant I could enjoy it more," he added.
McDowell bogeyed the 16th but responded with a tee shot to eight feet on the next and, after holing that, got up and down from sand at the last for his eighth birdie.
He was round in 64 - it would have been a record, of course, but for Gallacher - and the pair were together on seven under, one behind Siem.

SCOREBOARD TO COME

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LOTHIANS BOYS' CHAMPIONSHIP RETAINED

Simon Fairburn follows in Ronnie Shade's footsteps

FROM THE EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS WEBSITE
By Martin Dempster
Craigielaw's Simon Fairburn retained the Lothians boys' championship at the Braids last night – the first player to achieve the feat since the legendary Ronnie Shade nearly 50 years ago.
In an exciting final, Fairburn completed back-to-back wins as he beat Liberton's Anthony Blaney on the last green after being three up with four holes to play.
Shade won the event three years in a row from 1954-56 while only two other players have retained the title in the event's history – E L Thomson (Royal High) in 1929-30 and W G Gardner (George Watson's) in 1947-48.
Fairburn, pictured, runner-up in this year's Scottish youths' championship, was made to work hard to join that exclusive club after getting off to a flying start in the conclusion to this year's Golf Finance-sponsored event. The 18-year-old pitched dead for a conceded birdie at the first and also won the third, hitting his approach there to four feet for another birdie.
Blaney replied with a hole-winning birdie at the fourth, where his opponent hit his tee shot into a gorse bush, before squaring matters when he won the sixth after holing from 12 feet for a par.
A longer hitter, Fairburn drove the seventh and eighth to win both of them with birdies and looked to be well in control after he went three up at the ninth, where Blaney missed the green and failed to get up and down. A blocked drive from Fairburn allowed his opponent to win the tenth with a birdie-4 and Blaney holed a tricky five-footer at the par-13th to remain two down.
Fairburn then won the 14th, where he pitched to about two feet for a birdie, but Blaney had done well to make it to the final and wasn't about to throw in the towel without putting up a fight. At the 15th, it was his turn to produce a great pitch that set up a hole-winning birdie and he then holed a curling ten-footer to win the 16th with another birdie.
After three-putting the 17th, Fairburn's lead had vanished completely but Blaney missed his chance to put the defending champion under pressure when he hooked his tee shot at the last into the gorse.
Fairburn duly drove the green and, after lipping the hole with his 30-foot eagle attempt, was conceded the hole.
Tomorrow Fairburn, who lives in Galashiels, will be wearing Borders colours and Blaney is in the Lothians line-up in the Dunfermline Building Society Boys Area Championship at Peebles.
Blaney joins forces with Grant Forrest, Fraser Thain and Graeme Duncan and it's unlikely that any of the other 15 teams taking part will have prepared better for the event.
"We have prepared the best we possibly can," said Lothians junior convenor Paul Gibson. "(Former European Tour player] Dean Robertson held a couple of performance and coaching days with our boys down at Peebles and he was a revelation. We are going to Peebles with high hopes and any team that finishes ahead of Borders will be in with a shout."
That's due to the fact that, in addition to the on-form Fairburn, the hosts have two players, Craig Howie and Daniel Flannery, in their team who are playing on home soil tomorrow.

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By the left! Staten leads by one on Nationwide Tour

FROM THE PGA.COM WEBSITE
COLLEGE PARK, Maryland- Lefty B.J. Staten shot a 7-under 64 to take a one-stroke lead after 36 holes of the Melwood Prince George's County Open on the US Nationwide Tour. Staten's bogey-free effort at the University of Maryland Golf Course put him at 11-under 131 and one better than Justin Peters, who was bogey-free with an afternoon 67.

Sharing third place are Jin Park, Darron Stiles and Nick Flanagan, who bogeyed the final hole. Michael Clark II, Monday qualifier Kyle Thompson and Australian Stephen Leaney are at 8-under 134 and tied for sixth place.
"It was a lot of fun, obviously," said Staten. "I think it's probably my best round this year. I think we got lucky today on quite a few holes to have some good numbers, where I could be aggressive with the shot. I did a lot of good things today. I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of greens and just gave myself a lot of chances. I missed some putts but played really, really solid so I can't complain at all."
Staten had every chance to complain after missing five birdie putts inside of 15 feet during a seven-hole stretch that started at No. 8. The misses turned into makes starting with a 6-footer at the par-4 15th.
"I was getting frustrated," said the Texas resident. "The round could have been great but I just tried to stay patient. I knew if I could give myself a lot of opportunities coming down the stretch that a few might go in."
They finally did, giving Staten a 36-hole lead for the first time in his 86 career starts on the Nationwide Tour.
"The quality of play is so great and there are so many great players out here so you never know about the weekend," said Staten. "I'm just playing smart golf. I'm doing the right things to minimize my mistakes and maximize my opportunities."
While Staten was good and possibly great, Park was squeezing everything he could from a day that had him crisscrossing fairways thanks to an erratic driver.
"I got a lot out of my round. I didn't hit it very well off the tee," he said after hitting 7 of 14 fairways. "It was a little more stressful than yesterday but when the putter is working, it takes the pressure off everything else. I made a lot of putts from the 5-15 foot range. I feel really fortunate to have my putter working so far. It feels nice because I've been hitting it well all year and not putting well. Now it's a little of the opposite, hitting it decent and putting really well, so the game is a lot more fun."
It was also a lot of fun for Peters, who snuck up the leaderboard late in the day with three consecutive birdies near the end of his round.
"It's nice to be in the final group, that's an experience I haven't had out here yet," said Peters, who is in his rookie season on Tour. "I know it's just Saturday but it's fun. It's what we play for, to be in those positions. I know B.J. (Staten) and it should be a fun day."
The first two days have been a walk in the park for Peters, who may best be known for winning the inaugural "Big Break" on the Golf Channel.
"I've been hitting a lot of greens but not making any putts," said Peters, who is No. 123 on the money list. "I wouldn't say I hit the ball great the last two days but my scrambling was good. That's the name of the game to keep rounds going."
A total of 62 players made the 36-hole cut, which came at 3-under 139.

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Colin Montgomerie makes

headlines for wrong reasons

FROM THE SCOTSMAN WEBSITE
By Martin Dempster
IT was all going so well. Too well to be true, perhaps. But following yesterday's revelation that Colin Montgomerie is trying to save his marriage, it is hard not to reach the conclusion that the Ryder Cup captain is searching desperately for the fairway when he seemed to be aiming straight down the middle.
What makes matters worse for the Scot, of course, is that yesterday's report about him seeing an old flame came out in the week he is at Celtic Manor, venue for the match against the Americans in October.
It's an embarrassment and a very unwelcome distraction for Montgomerie, who might well have managed to do what the most expensive management team in golf have struggled to achieve in recent months: take the heat off Tiger Woods.
Quite frankly, the news of Montgomerie's extra-marital affair is a bolt from the blue and a genuine shock, because since he was appointed as Europe team captain early last year, the 46-year-old had not put a foot wrong. Until now.
He pulled off a masterstroke by appointing Paul McGinley and Thomas Bjorn as the two captains for last year's Vivendi Trophy knowing full well they were likely to be his two right-hand men at Celtic Manor.
He sent a personal email to every European Tour member before the qualifying process started last August, making it clear he was keen to communicate with his "potential candidates".
He also asked the Tour to pair him with two European players in opening rounds at events so that he could watch them at close quarters.
And he sent out a strong message that he expected his top players to be at Wentworth recently for the BMW PGA Championship – and they didn't let him down.
So far, so good. This week he has been laying down the law at Celtic Manor about what he expects from his potential team members in the run up to October. Suddenly, though, his personal life is all over the press again ahead of the one sporting event where wives and girlfriends are most conspicuous. At the Ryder Cup, the captain's wife is another of his assistants in all but name, and Gaynor Montgomerie has been heavily involved in the choosing of various gifts that will be handed out at Celtic Manor.
No prizes for guessing who the cameras will be trained on at Celtic Manor when the teams arrive for this year's match, and who the body language specialists will be analysing. This will add a level of pressure to Montgomerie that he will not have anticipated or invited. The strain of the match is etched on the face of every Ryder Cup captain we have witnessed in the past 25 years. Having your personal life placed under the microscope at the same time as guiding a team through the emotional rollercoaster ride of one of sports greatest contests would be, for some, an intolerable extra burden to bear.
For all his golfing prowess, leadership qualities and personal charm – contrary to some impressions he is excellent company – the temperamental Montgomerie cannot be said to take life in his stride. How he copes when the spotlight is trained on him like never before will go a long way to determining whether he is a success or a failure as a Ryder Cup captain.
We are moving into unknown territory. When Monty split from his first wife Eimear, there was public sympathy that a relationship had broken down. The impression that he was wounded – whether right or wrong – was unmistakable. But now, his admission that "I have put my marriage under considerable strain" will have come as a real shock to the golfing community.
About a year and a half ago, when he was the guest dinner at the PGA Scottish Region's annual lunch in Glasgow, he revealed the positive impact Gaynor had made on his life since the pair were introduced to each other by television presenter Dougie Donnelly. He said he loved moving to Perthshire after being based in London for so long and, on the surface at least, life looked good.
His golf isn't what it used to be. However, with the Ryder Cup captaincy to contend with, and his playing powers waning with age, no-one was too surprised that he was no longer a regular contender.
And at a recent press briefing for the Johnnie Walker Championship, the Scot gave the impression that he didn't have a worry in his life. He talked enthusiastically about this year's Ryder Cup and how he wanted to play in the one after it. If successful in achieving that ambition, he would become the first European to play in the event following a captaincy.
He was still on top form during a press conference on the eve of this week's Wales Open, but the lord of the Manor is now the talk of the Manor.
At a time like this, it is reasonable to ask what a man's main responsibility is: saving his marriage, or winning the Ryder Cup. Encouragingly, Monty has indicated that he wants – and intends – to do both. If he can resolve his personal difficulties, there is time enough for him to focus on his captaincy again. He will want to walk into the team room at Celtic Manor and tell his players he is 100 per cent committed, just as he was in his eight matches as a player.
Montgomerie didn't expect 2010 to be his year for the captaincy. He was convinced that his time would come in 2012 or, more likely, at Gleneagles in 2014. Europe, though, needed the right man in charge at Celtic Manor and, despite letting his guard drop, so far there is nothing to suggest the European Tour made the wrong choice.
It is ironic, though, that the timing of him seeing the final brick fitted in to place in his new family home in Perthshire has coincided with the first one being removed from the solid foundations he had laid for the Ryder Cup.

Monty: "I've put my married under considerable strain"

By MARK GARROD
RYDER Cup captain Colin Montgomerie insisted last night that new revelations about his private life would not have any effect on his Ryder Cup captaincy.

Montgomerie issued a statement after a newspaper ran a story saying he had seen a former girlfriend again for a while.
Married for the second time two years ago, the 46-year-old Scot said in the statement: "I have put my marriage under considerable strain, but we are working through these problems."
Montgomerie is playing in the Wales Open this week at Celtic Manor, the course near Newport where he will lead Europe's attempt to win back the Ryder Cup from the Americans in October.
Despite the distraction, he is in contention for a first win in three years after a second successive 70 left him two under par at halfway – only four strokes behind German Marcel Siem and Australian Andrew Dodt as the second round drew to a conclusion.
Agreeing to speak to reporters after his round he was inevitably questioned about the matter and commented: "I have said everything I have to say about that. I made a statement.
"The crowd were very supportive and it's up to Gaynor and I to work things out and continue and we look forward to welcoming everybody here in October.
"It's not going to impact on my captaincy at all. Not one bit."
Montgomerie then said: "There was no question of me not playing today. The only thing to do today was play golf."

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