Knost, Armour join leaders at Shell Houston Open
HUMBLE, Texas (AP) -- Colt Knost and Tommy Armour III shot 70s to tie Paul Casey, Geoff Ogilvy and John Senden for the lead at 8 under after two rounds of the Shell Houston Open on Saturday.
Fred Couples and Henrik Stenson were among the players one shot back at 7 under. Justin Leonard and 2006 champion Stuart Appleby were in a group of seven players at 6 under.
The third round was starting later Saturday, with threesomes teeing off on Nos. 1 and 10. The tournament has been playing catch-up since high winds forced the suspension of play on Thursday.
Phil Mickelson missed the cut at 9 over par. He followed a first-round 77 with a 76 that included two triple bogeys. But Mickelson didn't seem worried about his game heading into next week's Masters. He hadn't played since winning the World Golf Championships-CA Championship last month and said he needed some tournament rounds, regardless of the scores.
"It was really good that I played here, cause I made some mistakes during these first two rounds that you just can't do competitively," he said. "Stuff like that, I needed to get out of my system after a couple of weeks off.
"It doesn't feel like my game is far off," he said. "I'm not overly concerned with what the number showed. I'm looking forward to next week."
Vijay Singh, Steve Stricker, K.J. Choi and David Toms were among the other big names who missed the cut. Toms needed a win to qualify for Augusta, but will miss the Masters for the first time since 2004. Jeff Overton and Michael Campbell withdrew in the morning.
Casey was the first to post 8 under, finishing a second-round 70 late Friday, just before play was suspended for darkness. Ogilvy came back in the morning and made four pars to stay tied for the lead.
Senden, Knost and Armour also wrapped up their second rounds in calm conditions. Senden didn't make a bogey until hitting the fairway bunker on No. 18.
The breeze picked up by midmorning, but that didn't seem to faze Couples or Leonard. Couples birdied three of the four par-5s in the strengthening wind to tie for the lead. He also found the fairway bunker off the tee on No. 18 and bogeyed for a 69.
"When the wind is blowing, it's hard out there, but I got it around," said Couples, who finished fourth here last year. "I came into today, after being 4-under, I knew there would be a lot of guys ahead of me. But I just thought, 'If I hit it solid, I can keep ground.' It's a good spot to be in."
Leonard also bogeyed the 18th to wrap up a second-round 70. He needed only 15 putts on Saturday, but felt like he should've had even fewer.
"Hopefully, the next couple of rounds, I'll get those putts to start going in," he said. "I'm playing solid, not doing anything really special. Would like to have a few more putts go in."
Padraig Harrington shot a 67 to reach 5 under and Sergio Garcia and Greg Norman were another shot back at 4 under. The 54-year-old Norman is making a rare appearance on the regular tour to get ready for Augusta.
He was among the players whose rounds were suspended on Thursday and then faced strong breezes on Saturday. He made five birdies with two bogeys.
"Felt like a really good round today, even though we played in the worst of conditions," Norman said. "I played very nicely. I can't complain, the golf course has been good to me."
INSIDE THE ROPES WITH THE PGA TOUR NETWORK
PGA TOUR Network correspondent Mark Carnevale offers these observations from Friday's action. Listen to PGA TOUR Live coverage on XM 146/SIRIUS 209 or right here at PGATOUR.COM.
Well, we finally got 36 holes completed and now it will be a race to the finish. The cut came at 1-under par as conditions got difficult when the second round was finishing. With only seven shots separating the players in the field anything could happen with two rounds to play. A player who needs to have a good final two rounds is Davis Love III. He did birdie his final hole of the second round to get to 2 under, thinking at that time he needed to make it to make the cut. As it was, he didn't have to. But he does need two sizzling rounds to win the tournament, which would earn him a spot in the Masters.
It was certainly a disappointing week for Phil Mickelson in his preparation for the Masters. Phil carded rounds of 77 and 76 and missed the cut. He had two triple bogeys in his second round, but was in a good mood, taking time to talk with me on his walk from the ninth green to the 10th tee, and also behind the 13th green, which he triple bogeyed before greeting the 41st President of the United States, George Herbert Walker Bush and his wife Barbara. Phil, despite his poor play, spent over an hour signing autographs after his round. He truly understands his place out here on the PGA TOUR.
One player who will be playing the final two rounds is Greg Norman, who shot rounds of 71 and 69. He was playing in front of the threesome of Phil Mickelson, Justin Leonard and Charles Howell III. Greg was the Greg of old, receiving applause as he walked to every tee and green. You could sense and feel the desire that he wanted to perform for them. The expectations and adulation are deserving of a champion like Norman. It was good to see and it gives me hope that they might not have forgotten me as I get ready to make the trek to the Champions Tour.
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