Fabulous start for late-bloomer Adamonis

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HONOLULU -- A man who loves the beach surely doesn't mind swimming with the sharks.

Rookie Brad Adamonis, playing in just his eighth PGA TOUR event, followed up a splendid 66 with a gutsy 2-under-par 68 Friday at Waialae Country Club to put himself among the challengers to pacesetter K.J. Choi in the Sony Open in Hawaii.

Brad Adamonis. (Ferrey/WireImage)

Adamonis' stats

Through 36 holes

STATS Rnd1 Rnd2 TOT EAGLES -- -- 0 BIRDIES 5 4 9 PARS 12 12 24 BOGEYS 1 2 3 DOUBLE BOGEYS -- -- 0 OTHER -- -- 0 DRIVING ACCURACY 43 43 42.9 DRIVING DISTANCE 272.0 292.5 282.3 PUTTS PER ROUND 29 26 27.5 PUTTS PER GIR 1.714 1.700 1.708 GREENS IN REG 78 56 66.7 SAND SAVES -- 50 50.0

Just five days shy of his 35th birthday, Adamonis, of Hallandale, Fla., came to the year's first full-field event eager to shake off some rust and settle into his role as a regular member of the TOUR. He's done a little of both to sit at 6-under 134 and inside the top 10 with 36 holes remaining in Oahu.

"I just wanted to prepare as best I could, go out and play, and not worry about results. So far, that seems to be working," said Adamonis, whose only other money finish on the TOUR was a tie for 76th at the 2004 Buick Classic at Westchester Country Club in Rye, N.Y. "I haven't really played that great yet. My ball-striking is a little loose, but I'm putting well and thinking well, and I feel pretty fortunate to be in this position."

Adamonis, who grew up in Providence, R.I, and played college golf at Miami (Ohio) University, might have been slow to catch on as a full-time member of the TOUR, but he's seemingly been destined to reach the major leagues all of his life.

His father, Dave, who is the golf coach at Johnson and Wales University in North Miami, Fla., put a set of clubs in his hands when he was 3 years old. His brother, Dave Jr., manages the United States Challenge Cup of the Junior Golf Organization. "It's what we do," he said with a smile.

He played for a short while on the Hooters Tour and spent five years on the Nationwide Tour, winning last year's WNB Golf Classic after outlasting Vance Veazey, Ron Whittaker and Tjaart van der Walt in an eight-hole playoff -- the second longest in the Tour's history. He ended up 33rd on the money list, but saved his best golf for later in the year with his tie for ninth at the TOUR Qualifying Tournament.

He described as "nerve-wracking" the extra people and cameras and media that go with playing on the PGA TOUR. And, yet, the nerves didn't seem to show.

"You know, I did feel pretty relaxed," he said. "I think the Nationwide Tour prepares you for all of it. You just have to remember to go out and hit the shots and play golf."

Adamonis wasn't particularly happy with how he hit it, but the numbers on the scorecard were acceptable. He suffered only one bogey against three birdies despite hitting just six fairways and 10 greens. His 26 putts using a new Scotty Cameron prototype putter, the Newport P330 Squareback, loomed large in the final tally.

"I didn't play for about a month, so I'm rusty, but, yeah, I guess I'm also fresh," Adamonis said. "I chipped and putted well. I found a way to get it in the hole, and I'm pretty happy overall."

What would make him happier is to have his wife, Stacey, and their two small children with him. Other than being a bona fide "sports junkie" Adamonis loves to go to the beach -- and the shoreline lurks not more than a solid 5-iron from Waialae Country Club.

"I know they're excited for me," he said, "but I also know they'd love to be here. It's Hawaii; who wouldn't want to be here? But maybe next year we can get here earlier. That would be nice."

Earlier would be a spot in the Mercedes-Benz Championship, which is reserved for winners of PGA TOUR events. That's a worthy goal.

But that's not what you'd call swimming with the sharks.

That's being one of them.