Verplank sitting pretty in Buick Open despite two costly mistakes Veteran double bogeys 18th, still shoots 69 in Round 2  Special to PGATOUR.com GRAND BLANC, Mich. -- It happens every year at the Buick Open. From the time Scott Verplank pulls into the drive at Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club, he gets those good vibes.  Scott Verplank is already gunning for his second win of the year. (WireImage)
Everything about the tournament and the place reminds him of something positive, and the memories go all the way back to 1988, when Verplank won the Buick Open. Verplank's final round 66 gave him a two-shot victory over Doug Tewell. It was Verplank's second victory on the PGA Tour and the first since winning the Western Open as an amateur three years earlier. It doesn't matter how Verplank is playing when arrives in this town some 70 miles north of downtown Detroit. He knows good things will happen. It's happening again. Verplank added a 69 Friday to his opening 66 and is at 135. That's good enough to share the early second-round lead. This is Verplank's 19th appearance at the Buick Open. He's fifth on the tournament's career money list with $868,013, and he's certain to add a nice chunk to it this year. "I'm very comfortable on this course," Verplank said. "If I play like I'm capable, this place is perfect for me." Once one of the PGA TOUR's longest courses, Warwick Hills now plays a lot shorter. It's an excellent driving course with well-defined, tree-lined holes. Verplank hit 10 of 14 fairways and 14 greens Thursday, and called the round just OK. "Three-under is three-under, but I made a couple of mistakes that cost me two, three shots," Verplank said. Poor tee shots at the ninth and 18th holes were the culprits. He made bogey at the ninth after driving into the right rough and hitting his approach into a greenside bunker. At the par 4 18th, Verplank drove into the left rough and could only advance his second shot 82 yards. On in three, he three-putted from 24 feet for double-bogey 6. "Not the smartest thing I've ever done, but I'm still around," said Verplank, who is 9-under. There is no mystery to Warwick Hills. The average winning score since Rocco Mediate's victory in 2000 has been 22-under. Mediate won with a 20-under score and the last two winners -- Vijay Singh in 2005 and Tiger Woods in 2006, both absent this year -- won with 24-under 264 totals.
So plan on getting to twentysomething. The conditions were perfect again Friday. The greens are soft and receptive. "If you do what you're supposed to do, you can score," Verplank said. Verplank figures the Buick Open might owe him one. He tied for fourth last year behind Tiger Woods with rounds of 68-66-66-69. "Last year I actually had a great chance," Verplank said. "If I could have made any kind of putts on Sunday I would have been right there the last couple of holes. "I was hitting it really good coming around on Saturday and Sunday, and I was pretty disappointed when the tournament was over that I couldn't kick it in from five feet because I could have had a lot better chance of playing with Tiger." |
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