Nissan Open: Second-Round Notebook  PGA TOUR Media Official LOS ANGELES -- Second-round play in the Nissan Open was suspended due to darkness at 6:00 p.m. local time with George McNeill (1-under through 35 holes) the only player who did not complete his round. He will be back on the par-4 ninth hole with a 40' 3'' putt for birdie. The cut is firm at 1-over-par 143, and assuming McNeill doesn't make triple bogey or worse the final round will feature 79 players.  Padraig Harrington of Ireland played a round of brilliance and bogeys. (Steve Grayson/ WireImage)
• As is often the case at the Nissan Open, there is a strong international presence atop the leaderboard. Six international players are currently in the top 10, including tournament co-leader Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia (T4), David Howell (T4), Robert Allenby (T4), Aaron Baddeley (T8) and Ernie Els (T8). Seven of the past 10 winners of the Nissan Open were born outside of the United States, including most recently Rory Sabbatini in 2006. • Phil Mickelson has now held or shared the lead in five out of his last six rounds, dating back to the first round last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. • Phil Mickelson has now held outright or shared the second-round lead 24 times in his career. In the 23 previous tournaments, he has carried that lead on to the winner's circle 13 times -- most recently last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Mickelson is making his ninth start at the Nissan Open, with a T15 in 1999 his best outing. • This represents the third time in Padraig Harrington's career that he has held or shared the 36-hole lead on the PGA TOUR. The previous two times led to a T2 finish at the 2003 THE PLAYERS Championship and a T5 showing at the 2002 British Open. He is making his first career start at the Nissan Open. • David Howell's 68 moved him to 7-under-par 135, four shots off the lead. The key to his success so far this week? He has had a tournament-best 48 putts through the first two rounds (23 on Thursday, 25 on Friday). • The 36-hole leader has gone on to win three of the first six tournaments this season (Vijay Singh, Paul Goydos, Phil Mickelson). • Charles Howell III continued his excellent play of late with a bogey-free 65 -- the round of the day that was later equaled by Phil Mickelson. He has now posted 15 out of 20 rounds at par or better at the Nissan Open. The only other bogey-free round was turned in by Corey Pavin (66), bringing the total for the week to four. • Currently No. 3 in the FedExCup point standings, Charles Howell has posted runner-up finishes in 2007 at the Sony Open in Hawaii and the Buick Invitational, bringing his career total of second-place finishes to 10. One of those came in 2003 here at Riviera Country Club, which Howell calls his favorite course outside of the Augusta National Golf Club. • Ernie Els, making his season debut on the PGA TOUR this week, moved to 5-under 137 to extend his Tour-leading consecutive cuts made streak to 43. His last missed cut on the PGA TOUR came at the 2004 Bay Hill Invitational. • The shot of the day was turned in by Retief Goosen with a hole-in-one on the par-3 16th hole with a 7-iron from 165 yards. It represented his second ace on the PGA TOUR, with the first coming at No. 7 during the final round of the 2000 World Golf Championships-NEC Invitational. There have been six aces this season on TOUR. • David Toms (70) posted his 13th consecutive round at par or better, the best current streak on TOUR. • Phil Mickelson saw his bogey-free streak this week at the Nissan Open snapped at 33 holes. He rebounded nicely on the next hole, however, recording an eagle-3 on the par-5 17th hole -- the only eagle on that hole this week. • In addition to Charles Howell (65), the only other bogey-free round was posted by Corey Pavin (66) -- bringing the total for the week to four. • Robert Allenby -- who survived a six-man playoff to win the 2001 Nissan Open -- moved to T4 at 7-under-par 135. He is one of nine past champions of the Nissan Open competing this week. Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
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