Wyndham Championship, Round 2
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
DONE FOR THE DAY (8:10 p.m.): The second round couldn't beat darkness to the finish line, not after a four-hour weather delay yesterday. The last group of the day was on No. 14 when play was halted due to darkness. Play will resume 7:45 a.m. Saturday and when it does, Jeff Maggert will have one hole left to play with a chance to tie Ryan Moore and Chris Riley for the lead at 11 under.
When play is completed tomorrow morning, a cut will be made and the players re-paired and sent off split tees. As of now, 19 players are within four shots of the lead. At the other end of the leaderboard, the cut line is at 2 under with a handful of players still left to try to play their way into the rest of the weekend.
The story of the day was written early, though, with Chris Riley shooting a 63 for the day's best score. He shouldn't have any trouble sleeping on that one. Now we'll wait and see what the weekend brings. -- Brian Wacker
MOORE OWNS SHARE OF THE LEAD (7:50 p.m.): Thanks to three birdies over his last four holes, Ryan Moore has pulled even with Chris Riley at 11 under atop the leaderboard at the Wyndham Championship.
Moore still has a couple of holes left, but darkness is fast approaching. Either way, this is the best position he's been in since the Travelers Championship, where he shot a final-round 64 to finish in a tie for fourth. -- Brian Wacker
REAVIE, MOORE MOVE WITHIN ONE (7:15 p.m.): Thankfully, the weather that was supposed to come today never did, allowing for uninterrupted play at the Wyndham Championship, where the second round is winding down, especially for Chez Reavie and Ryan Moore, each of whom has moved to within one of the lead.
At the other end of the leaderboard, the cut line, surprisingly, has remained at 2 under for most of the day. It could move, but for the time being it's been lodged there almost all day. That means that David Toms, Danny Lee, Bubba Watson and Chris DiMarco are all on the outside looking in. -- Brian Wacker
GARCIA MUCH HAPPIER (6:35 p.m.): What a difference a day makes, or a couple of days for that matter. After shooting a 6-under 64 to get into a tie for second today, Sergio Garcia had little to be unhappy with.
"There's no doubt that I saw a little bit of improvement in the game, which is good," Garcia said Friday. "Don't get me wrong, though, I'm still not happy the way I played. I feel like there was some shots out there that I could have executed a little better.
"I'm just trying to play and try to keep getting a little bit more confidence on my game and see if I can shoot a couple good rounds and see where that takes me."
Right now, it's taken him to one of the best rounds of the day.
"The good thing is some of my bad shots are much better than they've been lately. I hit a good amount of greens, which I haven't been doing lately and I've rolled the putter pretty well, which I've been doing lately. If you mix it altogether it all adds up to where I am." -- Brian Wacker
STILL HOLDING STEADY (6 p.m.): Chris Riley finished his second round hours ago. yet his 11-under total is still holding atop the leaderboard. No one in the afternoon wave has been able to catch him, at least not yet.
Brandt Snedeker is 3 under through 10 holes in the second round and 9 under for the week, but he's still two back. With about two hours of daylight left he'll be lucky to finish. Ken Duke is also 3 under, but he's four back. And the last groups of the day are through just seven holes. At this rate, Riley's chances of sleeping on the lead are looking pretty good. -- Brian Wacker
AGE JUST A NUMBER FOR THOMAS (5:20 p.m.): Justin Thomas, a 16-year-old from Goshen, Ky., likely will become the third youngest player in to make the cut in a PGA TOUR event on Friday. Thomas, who shot a bogey-free 65 in the first round, finished with a 36-hole total of 3 under.
Thomas actually moved within two strokes of the lead with a birdie on his first hole in the second round. He saw his name on the big LED scoreboards that dot the picturesque Sedgefield layout, too, and admitted that he was even "thinking of winning."
Those aspirations were taken down a notch, though, when Thomas came home in 38 and shot a second-round 73. Just playing the weekend was a big confidence boost for Thomas, who won the AJGA Footjoy Invitational at Sedgefield earlier this year.
"I got there with good playing and solid play," Thomas said, assessing his performance in the first two rounds. "Unfortunately, I couldn't finish the way I wanted to and get near the lead and have a chance but I'm not sure. It was cool seeing my name.
"But, then again, I was kind of like disappointed knowing I was that close and had that bad back nine." -- Helen Ross
NEW IRONS IN THE BAG FOR HAAS (4:54 p.m.): Bill Haas wasn't exactly in love with anything in his golf bag. Not after missing 11 cuts this year, including five in his last eight starts.
So he put a new set of irons with new shafts prior to coming to Greensboro to play in the Wyndham Championship. And he rode a new putter to a tie for 18th at the Buick Open in his last start.
Haas' confidence in the new equipment has been rewarded at Sedgefield, too. He put the finishing touches on a rain-delayed 62 Friday morning then turned right around and fired a 69 in the second round.
So not only did Haas make his first cut in five starts at the Wyndham Championship, he'll start the weekend among the leaders at 9 under. He had never shot in the 60s in eight previous rounds at the Wyndham, four of which came at Sedgefield.
The new putter has been a big boost. "Just when I sit over 10-footer I feel like I can make it, which is a change for me," Haas said. "If you have that kind of confidence, I think it frees everything else up, driver and irons."
The irons just seemed to hit his eye. "If somebody sends me a pretty good looking set of new irons I'm going to use them," he said. "These are a little shinier. I wanted to use them.
"I took two weeks off and I played a decent amount at home and really played well with them. So I guess coming in, you know, I had the confidence." -- Helen Ross
SHORT, STRAIGHT AND IN THE LEAD (4:30 p.m.): Chris Riley doesn't care what anyone else thinks.
He's hit a lot of 3-woods and hybrids off the tee during the first two rounds at Sedgefield, and the results speak for themselves. Riley's atop the leaderboard at 11 under after Friday's bogey-free round of 63.
Riley estimated he only hit his driver four times on Friday. He's kept the ball in play, though, hitting all but eight fairways during the first two rounds and 26 of 36 greens. He used just 25 putts on Friday, as well.
"I'm playing this golf course a little bit different than maybe some other guys," Riley acknowledged. "I'm hitting a lot of hybrids and 3-woods off the tee because the rough is pretty thick so I'm just trying to keep the ball in the fairway. I don't mind hitting a 2-iron, 7-iron or 3-wood, 6-iron compared to guys hitting driver and missing fairways.
"I'm delighted with my round. 63. I don't think I've shot that too much but it's been going well the last month so hopefully I'll have a good weekend."
Riley said his playing partners kept pulling out the big stick. More than once he got one of those looks that said "What in the world are you doing?" But Riley was content to see the ball in the fairway and take his chances on the greens.
"I'm putting really well and these greens are Donald Ross so you got to be putting pretty well and they're in good shape," Riley said. " It's a good golf course.
"It's a pretty cool golf course because you can really take it however you want. If you want to challenge it and have wedges in your hand, you hit drivers. If you don't, then you hit whatever." -- Helen Ross
SINGH ON HIS STRONG DAY (4:15 p.m.): The birdies came in bunches for Jeev Milkha Singh on Friday during the second round of the Wyndham Championship. He reeled off six in a row starting at No. 2 after pinpoint approaches left him putts of 4, 18, 5, 2, 6 and 10 feet.
The result was a round of 64 that moved him to 7 under and just four strokes off the lead held by Chris Riley. Singh is playing at Sedgefield after being extended a sponsor's exemption and he's certainly making the most of the opportunity.
"I rolled it pretty good today on the front nine, lot of lips outs, but on the back nine, I ... holed a lot of putts and just got into the momentum and it kept going, picking them up," Singh said.
The two rounds in the 60s were Singh's best since he injured an intercostal muscle in his rib at the European Open. He tried to come back too soon and is just now starting to return to the form that saw him finish fourth at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship.
"I'm happy everything is behind me now and look forward to good things," Singh said. 'I think these are the first two rounds after the injury that I've shot under par. So I'm really glad and I'm happy to be playing again and I'm shooting in the red and that's what I'm striving for. I'm getting there."
Singh recently became a Special Temporary Member of the PGA TOUR so he can accept unlimited sponsor's exemptions as he tries to finish in the top 125 on the money list and earn his card for 2010. He's hoping to play in at least three Fall Series events toward that end.
"I make enough in that, to keep my card, well and good," Singh said. "If not, then come back again in the Top 50 and try to play."
There's another event Singh dearly wants to make -- The Presidents Cup. He finished one spot out of the 10 automatic qualifiers, which isn't too bad given that he missed the better part of three months due to his injury.
Now he needs to impress International Captain Greg Norman, who completes his team with two picks on Sept. 8. So far Singh's doing a pretty good job.
"Lot of golf left yet, another two weeks," he said. "I'm just coming out of an injury, getting a little better but it's up to Greg, you know, what he feels and what he thinks is the right guys to be picked up.
"My job is to try to play the best I can and hopefully do a good job." -- Helen Ross
SECOND ROUND ROLLING ON (4 p.m.): We're well into the second round here at the Wyndham Championship, where the scores continue to be low, partly because of the course, partly because the rain yesterday softened the course tremendously, allowing players to fire at flags all day.
Completing the second round today, however, is going to be a problem. With the last tee time set for 4:30 p.m. ET, players will be up against it. There's enough daylight to play until about 8:15 p.m., so that means we could be back here bright and early Saturday to finish the round, make a cut and re-pair for the third round. -- Brian Wacker
SCOTT'S STRUGGLES (3:33 p.m.): Last week, Adam Scott talked about how downright awful his putting was, telling our Helen Ross, "I have never putted so badly in my life. It's really frustrating. I was one of the most consistent players out there earlier this year and I'm not even close to that right now. I know what I have to do. I need to work on what I believe is right."
This week wasn't any better. Yes, Scott shot a 66 yesterday, but even that featured 31 putts. Today, he shot 75, taking 35 putts along the way. His 66 putts in two rounds ranks 140th in the field at the moment.
Scott is currently projected to make the field for next week's PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, but the way he's playing, it could be one-and-done for the Aussie. -- Brian Wacker
GARCIA SURGES (3:05 p.m.): Earlier in the week, Sergio Garcia didn't exactly sound like he was happy with his game. There were lots of one sentence answers to the questions asked in his press conference and he admitted to not being very pleased with his play.
Well, Garcia certainly seems to have turned things around today. The Spaniard shot a 6-under 64, which moves him to 9 under for the week and just two shots off the lead. He also has three eagles this week, two of which came today.
For a second straight day, Garcia eagled the par-5 fifth, where he rolled in a 31-foot, 9-inch putt (yesterday he made one from 26 feet there). The other eagle today came on the par-5 15th, where he hit it to 5 1/2 feet from 219 yards out.
That should help put Garcia in a better mood today. It was about this time last year when he caught fire, finishing in the top 5 in four of his last five events. -- Brian Wacker
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RILEY TIES PERSONAL RECORD (2:22 p.m.): Different course, same results. In other words, lots of low scores at the Wyndham Championship, where Chris Riley has taken a two-shot lead thanks to a second-round 63 in which he birdied four of his last six holes.
There's still a lot of golf left to be played today, but Riley is the clubhouse leader for now after matching his career low for a third time -- the last time he shot 63 was in the second round in Hartford in 2003.
Riley's score is hardly the only low one on the board, though, with a pairs of 64s already turned in by Jeev Milkha Singh and John Senden. Kevin Sutherland also shot a 65, but he's well back in a tie for 21st at the moment. Stay tuned, something says there are going to be more low numbers coming in and a lot of movement on the leaderboard, as long as the weather holds off anyway. -- Brian Wacker
Below is a look at Riley's scorecard from today:
DON'T SLEEP ON SINGH (2:05 p.m.): Jeev Milkha Singh badly wants to be one of Greg Norman's captain's picks for The Presidents Cup and if he keeps playing like he has today, he's going to make it awfully difficult for the Aussie not to pick him.
Singh, who shot a ho-hum 1-under 69 in the first round, just moved into contention with a 6-under 64 in the second round, making six straight birdies at one point on his way to a 29 over his final nine holes.
Currently 12th in the International Team standings, Singh was in near perfect form today, hitting 16 of 18 greens in regulation. During his birdie binge on the front nine at Sedgefield, only one approach shot landed outside of 10 1/2 feet. Singh's 64 is also the best score of his season, surpassing an opening-round 65 at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship. -- Brian Wacker
Below is a look at Singh's scorecard from today (To replay his round with Shot Tracker, click here):
SCOTT STRUGGLING AGAIN (1:48 p.m.): Yesterday, we saw signs of life in Adam Scott's game in the form of a 4-under 66 -- his best round of the year since the Sony Open in Hawaii, where he finished second with scores of 66-64 on the weekend.
Well, the success was short-lived. Scott is struggling mightily today at 5 over through 14 holes with five bogeys and no birdies. That also brings him to 1 over for the week and, unless something drastic happens over his last few holes, has the Aussie headed for another missed cut.
Among Scott's struggles has been his putting. Though he scored well yesterday, he still took 31 putts. Today, he already has 27 putts in 14 holes. Last week, he took 70 putts in two rounds at the PGA Championship. A missed cut here also could mean missing the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup, though right now he is projected to be at 119th, just inside the 125 cutoff number. -- Brian Wacker
RILEY ON A ROLL (1:32 p.m.): Chris Riley has yet to make a bogey here in the second round. Combine that with five birdies and he now has the lead by himself -- for now -- at 9 under.
Assuming Riley's round holds up -- he has three holes to play -- it will be just the fourth time this year he's shot back-to-back rounds in the 60s and if he pars in, it would be the best 36-hole start of his season.
The last -- and only -- time Riley won on the PGA TOUR was in 2002 at the Reno-Tahoe Open. -- Brian Wacker
THREE TIED AT THE TOP (1:10 p.m.): There's still a lot of golf left to be played today, especially with the first round not finishing until this morning thanks to yesterday's lengthy weather delay -- more weather could be on the way soon -- but no one has been able to catch Chris Riley, Boo Weekley and Bill Haas just yet. All three are at 8 under and various stages of their second round.
Of that trio, Riley stands to gain the most. He's on the outside looking in for the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup and is projected to finish well inside the top 125 at the moment. Haas and Weekley, meanwhile, are already in the top 100 on the FedExCup points list, so they should be safe.
Also, 16-year-old Justin Fisher looks well on his way to becoming the third-youngest player in TOUR history to make the cut. He entered the second round at 5 under and is already 1 under through his first holes today ... and just three shots off the lead.
Thomas, as noted earlier, is 16 years, 3 months and 23 days old. Bob Panasik was 15 years, 8 months and 20 days old when he made the cut at the 1957 Canadian Open; Tadd Fujikawa 16 years and 4 days old when he made the cut at the 2007 Sony Open in Hawaii. -- Brian Wacker
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WEEKLEY ALL ALONE (12:40 p.m.): Boo Weekley has moved to the top of the leaderboard here at the Wyndham Championship, where his birdie on the par-4 10th brings him to 9 under for the week and 4 under on the round.
Weekley's been spot on all day and really all week, hitting 7 of 8 fairways and 9 of 10 greens in regulation in the second round. For the week, he's hit 17 of 22 fairways and 24 of 28 greens. -- Brian Wacker
TWEET OF THE DAY (12:15 p.m.): "Rehab is going ok. Still not sure about next week yet. Getting frustrated which is why I haven't twittered much."
"Haven't picked up a club in over a week. I can't remember the last time that happened." -- Paul Casey (@Paul_Casey), who isn't in the field this week and sounds questionable for next week, tweeting about the rib injury that's been bothering him since the British Open and forced him to withdraw from last week's PGA Championship.
That doesn't sound like someone who's overly confident, but it will be a wait-and-see decision for Casey, who also tweeted that he just had his second ultrasound treatment of the day. -- Brian Wacker
HAAS HAVING A GOOD WEEK (12 p.m.): His lead was probably destined to be short-lived, but Bill Haas didn't mind.
He was just pleased to post a number like the career-low, 8-under 62 he threw out Friday morning in the completion of the rain-delayed first round of the Wyndham Championship. Haas led Brandt Snedeker, Chez Reavie and Ryan Moore by two when he finished and teed off in the second round less than an hour later, though Boo Weekley has since pulled even with him.
"I think it's good," Haas said of the quick turnaround. "I don't have time to get nervous about it. It's only the first round, so much golf to be played, and I'm going to go out in the next round and try to keep it going.
"The putter feels good and out here as soft as the greens are, you're going to have birdie putts. You hopefully will make a few."
Haas, whose father, Jay, was a nine-time champion on the PGA TOUR, is looking for the first win of his career. He's finished third twice, most recently at this year's Valero Texas Open, and stands 92nd in the FedExCup race.
Haas played at nearby Wake Forest, following in the footsteps of his father and uncle Jerry, who is now the golf coach there. So the Greenville, S.C., resident figures to have plenty of support in his quest this week.
"Just to play well would be nice," Haas said. "Didn't have much expectation coming in here, I missed the cut last year, hadn't been playing all that outstanding. I was working on some stuff and it feels good.
"Jerry, my coach from Wake, my uncle, came down yesterday to watch and it's definitely nice to be close. Maybe later this afternoon I might drive up, my sister is in school at Wake so I'll go out there and check it out. It's definitely nice, close to where I went to school so to play well is nice." -- Helen Ross
Below is a look at Haas' first-round scorecard:
WEEKLEY MAKING A MOVE (11:38 a.m.): Thanks to an eagle on the par-5 fifth hole, Boo Weekley has now pulled into a tie for the lead at the Wyndham Championship.
Weekley made the eagle after hitting his approach from 222 yards to just seven feet before rolling in the putt to get to 3 under on the round and 8 under for the week.
This has been an up-and-down year for Weekley, who has battled back and shoulder problems. He has just one top-10 all season, but has finished between 10th and 15th a half-dozen times. Follow the rest of Weekley's round with Shot Tracker by clicking here. -- Brian Wacker
WEATHER UPDATE (11:20 a.m.): The sun was out briefly Friday morning, but the clouds have now returned -- which is not good news for the Wyndham Championship. The forecast calls for more of the same kind of weather that caused a four-hour delay on Thursday.
A tropical air mass and approaching cold front will prove combustible, bringing numerous showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. The rain is expected to continue overnight and into Saturday morning. The chance for rain finally decreases Saturday afternoon while Sunday should be partly cloudy -- which should be good news given the possibility of more delays. -- Helen Ross
RILED UP (11:05 a.m.): With everyone now having completed the opening round, some players have moved into their second round, including current leader Bill Haas and Chris Riley, who is one shot back.
Riley, who shot a 66 in the first round, is keeping the momentum going in Round 2 with three birdies in his first six holes. Though Riley has struggled the past few years, including this season, he's played well of late with with three straight finishes in the top 20, including a season-best tie for seventh in Milwaukee.
Because of that, and with Riley playing well this week, he's projected to make a huge jump in the FedExCup standings. He entered the week 129th -- and out of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup -- but is projected to move up to 64th. You can follow Riley's round live with Shot Tracker by clicking here. -- Brian Wacker
NO DOUBTING THOMAS (10:48 a.m.): Justin Thomas, a 16-year-old from Goshen, Ky., shot a 5-under 65 in the first-round of the Wyndham Championship.
If Thomas makes the cut he would be the third youngest player in PGA TOUR history to make the cut. Thomas is 16 years, 3 months and 23 days old today. Bob Panasik was 15 years, 8 months and 20 days old when he made the cut at the 1957 Canadian Open. Tadd Fujikawa was 16 years and 4 days old when he made the cut at the 2007 Sony Open in Hawaii.
Thomas shot one of eight bogey-free first-rounds -- the others came from Steve Elkington, Peter Lonard, Jeff Maggert, Scott McCarron, Ryan Moore, Scott Sterling and Kevin Streelman.
Thomas is in the field on a sponsor exemption after winning at the American Junior Golf Association's FootJoy Invitational earlier this year at Sedgefield Country Club. For the first year, a sponsor's exemption to the Wyndham Championship was granted to the winner of that tournament and so far Thomas is making the most of the opportunity.
At the FootJoy Invitational, three late birdies helped Thomas turn a two-shot deficit into a two-shot victory to earn a spot here. Thomas also has two other AJGA wins on his resume. -- Mark Stevens
TIGER COMMITS TO BARCLAYS (10:30 a.m.): Tiger Woods has committed to next week's Barclays, the first event in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup.
It'll be interesting to see what Woods, and others, have to say about Liberty National, a Tom Kite-Bob Cupp design that has stunning views of New York City from across the river in New Jersey. It's also possibly the most expensive golf course ever built at $129 million, constructed on a 160-acre site that was a former oil refinery and Army base. It's also not without it's quirks, though, so there might be 129 opinions on it, too. Or 125 at least, anyway. -- Brian Wacker
ACES UP (10:15 a.m.): Steve Elkington hasn't exactly had what you'd call a banner year -- nine missed cuts, eight made cuts -- but he provided a highlight-reel moment yesterday, making a hole-in-one on the 168-yard, par-3 third hole.
Not only was that the 30th hole-in-one of the year on the PGA TOUR (click here for the complete list), it moved Elkington to 4 under through 14 holes as he finishes up his first round this morning.
Elkington is one of a number of players finishing the first round today after play was halted yesterday for four hours due to weather. One of the players already in this morning is Bill Haas, who birdied four of his last five holes to get to 8 under and in the lead. Haas' 62 is a career-low by two strokes, breaking his previous mark of 64 in the second round of the 2004 Deutsche Bank Championship. It also puts him in good position after missing four of his last six cuts. -- Brian Wacker
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