Children's Miracle Network Classic, Round 2
| PGATOUR.COM Instant Access | ||
| Children's Miracle Network Classic | ||
|
By PGATOUR.COM Staff
ALL-JUSTIN FINAL GROUP (5:30 p.m.) -- Play has wrapped up in the second round, with a final group Saturday of Justin Leonard (12 under) and Justin Rose (10 under).
CUT LINE MOVES TO 2 UNDER (4:50 p.m.) -- The cut line, which has been 1 under for most of the day, has moved to 2 under, which is bad news for Todd Hamilton (1 under, 133rd on the money list). It also puts Matt Bettencourt, one of the Round 1 leaders, outside the cut line. Bettencourt is 4 over today on the Magnolia Course -- he has a whopping 31 putts through 16 holes.
FLESCH MIGHT LIVE (4:40 p.m.) -- According to ShotLink, Steve Flesch is the projected 125th player on the money list. Flesch shot 72-73 and will miss the cut, so he will have to wait and see if his year-long total of $668,052 will be good enough to keep his card.
Flesch was well inside the cut line on the Palm Course on Friday, but he shot a 40 on the back nine, including a triple bogey on the par-5 14th hole.
David Duval, who entered the week 125th but shot 76-73 to miss the cut, is projected to fall all the way to 132nd.
MCNEILL WORKING ON THE ROUND OF THE DAY (4:15 p.m.) -- George McNeill, who lost in a playoff three weeks ago in Las Vegas, is currently 5 under on the tougher Magnolia Course. His run has gotten him to 9 under, probably not enough to catch Justin Leonard, who shot a 64 on the Palm Course.
| A sip of Maginnes | |
|
FOWLER STRUGGLING ON DAY 2 (3:50 p.m.) -- Rickie Fowler's day over at the Magnolia Course started on a bad note when he hooked his opening drive into the water on the par-5 10th, and his round has been a battle since then.
Fowler is only nine rounds into his professional career on the PGA TOUR -- and all nine rounds have been in the 60s. Barring a rally, that streak will end on Friday, but he's still in good shape to move into the top 125 and earn a PGA TOUR card for 2010.
Fowler only need a finish around the top-10, and with two top-5s remaining on his round at Magnolia, he seems primed to be around that spot with two days to go at Disney.
• To track Fowler using Shot Tracker, click here.
STREELMAN WINS KODAK CHALLENGE (3:30 p.m.) -- Kevin Streelman entered the final event with a two-shot lead in the season-long Kodak Challenge, but he didn't wait long to seal the $1 million prize.
Streelman stuck his approach on the par-4 17th at Magnolia to three feet and sank the putt, giving him an insurmountable three-shot lead.
The prize is a fitting end to a solid sophomore season by Streelman, who burst upon the PGA TOUR scene in 2008 after navigating through q-school. Streelman found himself paired with Tiger Woods in Round 3 of the 2008 Buick Invitational, and Streelman's wide-eyed view of the TOUR has never wavered even as he grew into one of the best young players in the game.
Along the way, Streelman never forgot his tough road to the TOUR. Before the Children's Miracle Network Classic, he spoke about the life of as struggling pro.
"I remember driving across the country to Arkansas for a Hooters event because I had to Monday qualify for and I didn't have any status on the Tour, and I finished second," Streelman said. "And I remember making I think it was $11,000, and it was like the world to me because I had nothing and I could pay those guys back immediately for what they had given me.
"And to me, I was never a silver spoon kid. I was never a country club member anywhere. So it's been a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication."
VIDEO: Streelman looks back on q-school | Streelman's home practice area
DRIVE FOR SHOW, INDEED (3:18 p.m.) -- A quick check of the top of the leaderboard shows that driving distance simply doesn't matter much at the Walt Disney World Resort, even though a pair of long bombers (Davis Love III and Tommy Gainey) finished 1-2 here last year.
1. Justin Leonard (12 under), 287 yards, tied for 34th
2. Justin Rose (10 under), 287 yards, tied for 34th
3. Tom Pernice Jr. (8 under), 261 yards, 121st
T71. J.B. Holmes (1 under), 316 yards, 1st
HAAS HOLDING STEADY (2:55 p.m.) -- Bill Haas has already assured himself a career year on TOUR, but the young player out of Wake Forest is getting closer to his first PGA TOUR win.
Haas shot a bogey-free 68 on the tough Magnolia Course in Round 1, and he's yet to make a mistake today over on the Palm Course. As usual, his 300-yard drives have given him the edge on the field, although he is still four shots back of Justin Leonard, who continues to lead at 12 under.
Haas' older brother, Jay Haas Jr., is trying to join him on TOUR in 2010. The elder Haas made it through the first stage of q-school earlier this month and is set for the second stage next week at Southern Hills Plantation Club.
HERRON EASILY MAKES IT TO THE WEEKEND (2:30 p.m.) -- Tim Herron, who entered the week 128th on the money list, fired a back-nine 32 on the Palm Course for a 66 and a spot in the top 10.
Herron, who has never finished out of the top 125 since he came out on TOUR in 1996, is still without a top-10 on the season in 26 starts. His best finish was a tie for 12th at the Sony Open in Hawaii.
DIMARCO MISSING FLORIDA AT SOUTH CAROLINA (2 p.m.) -- In a state full of Florida Gator fans, you'd be hard-pressed to find a bigger one than Chris DiMarco, who played on the same UF golf team as Dudley Hart and Pat Bates.
The Super Bowl of the DiMarco family is recently been the Florida-South Carolina matchup, which will be contested on Saturday afternoon in Columbia. DiMarco's nephew Patrick is a starting fullback for the Gamecocks.
"This is such a great week for the family, for the kids," DiMarco said. "It's a shame it's on the same weekend as the South Carolina game. This is probably my favorite tournament on TOUR, other than a major, so it's great to be here. It's nice to have friends out and people follow me, people pulling for me, and that's what it's all about. "
BEEM LEAVES LITTLE MARGIN FOR ERROR (1:40 p.m.) -- Rich Beem lost his PGA TOUR card after the 2008 season -- he finished 140th on the money list -- and instead of going to q-school, he played out of the 126-150 category and used sponsor exemptions to fill out the rest of his schedule.
It was a formula that worked out well. He made it into 26 events, which is only a handful shy of his usual schedule, and entering the Children's Miracle Network Classic, he sat 124th on the money list.
Beem made the turn the Palm Course on Friday morning and promptly eagled the par-5 first hole to get to 7 under, all but assuring a deep run on the weekend. But Beem unraveled from there, bogeying four of the final eight holes to finish with a 73. His 2 under on the week left him only one shot above the projected cut line.
Beem's bigger problem? Making the cut will not guarantee a spot in the top 125, especially with players like Jeff Maggert (127th), Tim Herron (128th), Will MacKenzie (130th) and Tom Pernice Jr. (136th) and Chris DiMarco (138th) all playing well.
• OUTSIDE THE ROPES: Learn more about Rich Beem 
WIND CREATING PROBLEMS ON THE GREENS, TOO (1:20 p.m.) -- The high winds on Friday at both courses have made it difficult to judge putts, especially the lag putts.
"I really noticed it on the 16th green," said Justin Rose, who three-putted the 16th hole for his lone bogey in 36 holes. "I had about a 30-footer up the hill. Should have backed off of it because I really felt like I was beginning to get pushed around by the wind and almost felt like my ball might oscillate or even move. I don't think we're going to get in that situation out there, but that's kind of how I felt. It was certainly a factor."
Added Justin Leonard, who is in the clubhouse at 12 under:
"Playing in wind like this, sometimes it's hard to judge, and I misjudged today a couple of cross-winds," Leonard said.
| A sip of Maginnes | |
|
MEDIATE APPEARS HEADED TO Q-SCHOOL (12:30 p.m.) -- Rocco Mediate shot 78 on the Palm Course on Friday morning, assuring that he will finish out of the top 125.
It was a strange year for Mediate, who missed only four cuts in 22 starts, yet entered the final event of the year ranked 141st on the money list. His lone top-10 was a tie for ninth at the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open, and he failed to find his game in the Fall Series, as he broke 70 just twice in 10 rounds.
DIMARCO'S BUSY MONTH (12:17 p.m.) -- Chris DiMarco is among those fighting for his TOUR card this week -- he's 138th on the money list -- and he just closed out a 68 on the Palm Course that got him to 8 under on the tournament and gives him an excellent shot at retaining his status for 2010.
Earlier this month, DiMarco was the unofficial host for the Norma DiMarco Tee Up for Life Golf Tournament, which has as generated in over $4 million in nine years for cancer research.
The PGA TOUR's Laury Livsey wrote earlier this month about the health challenges the DiMarco family has faced over the years, and how golf has helped them raise money for various causes.
DiMarco's 68-68 start in the Children's Miracle Network Classic gives him 10 consecutive rounds in the 60s as he tries to avoid a trip to the q-school finals.
LEONARD IN WITH A EVENTFUL 64 (11:59 a.m.) -- Justin Leonard has the lowest round of the week so far, but one has to wonder how low he could have gone.
Leonard made three bogeys on the Palm Course, including one of the 547-yard par-5 14th hole. Leonard, who had only four pars, twice had streaks of four consecutive birdies. In his first 36 holes, he's racked up 16 birdies, easily topping the field.
Here is a look at Leonard's scorecard:
MEET SEAN FOLEY (11:45 a.m.) -- Several of the players around the top of the leaderboard in the Children's Miracle Network Classic have been working with Sean Foley, a Canadian whose rise among PGA TOUR swing coaches can be classified as meteoric.
Foley, who divides his time between Canada and Orlando, has been working with Justin Rose, Greg Owen and Stephen Ames. He's also worked with Sean O'Hair, who has moved to 15th in the Official World Golf Ranking from 59th a year ago.
"[I've] felt my swing's changed quite dramatically," Rose said. "I've gone down a different path with it, and I feel like I've really seen some results already. I feel like my ball striking has really improved second half of the season."
Says Owen, who shot 66 on Thursday: "I hit a lot of close shots today and I feel comfortable, and I'm hitting shots further. [Foley] is very easy to work with and very easy to take what he says and just let it go, so that's what I'm doing."
ROSE: OFF THE COURSE LIFE HAS HELPED MY GAME (11:30 a.m.) -- Justin Rose became a first-time father when his son Leo was born in February, and while the addition kept him off the TOUR until March, he says it made him a better player.
"It's an amazing addition. And then from, yeah, so that's fantastic," Rose said. "[I] feel like very happy off the golf course, which is obviously a key ingredient to playing well on the golf course."
ROSE STILL BOGEY-FREE (11:06 a.m.) -- While the spotlight has been on Leonard early in the second round, overnight leader Justin Rose is grinding his way through the tougher Magnolia Course.
Rose is 3 under through 14 holes, putting him at 10 under for the tournament. Rose, who is winless in 149 starts on the PGA TOUR, does not have a bogey on his card.
ERIK COMPTON UPDATE (10:45 a.m.) -- Erik Compton, the two-time heart transplant survivor who has tried to secure a PGA TOUR card in recent years, is hovering right around the cut line at 1 under.
Compton was granted a sponsor's exemption to play in this event for the second year in a row. He easily breezed past the first stage of q-school earlier this month near his hometown of Miami, shooting 22 under at the Wanamaker Course in Port St. Lucie.
Next up for Compton? Q-school second stage qualifying at Southern Hills Plantation Club in Brooksville, Fla. Play gets under way next Wednesday, and you can bookmark this link to follow Compton as he tries to earn full-time privileges in 2010.
PERNICE GOES FOR TOUR CARD, HISTORY (10:15 a.m.) -- Tom Pernice Jr. turned 50 in September, but he's only played one Champions Tour event: the SAS Championship. He won it.
Even so, the Champions Tour can wait. His start on Friday over at the Palm Course showed why.
Pernice is already 6 under after 10 holes after eagling the short par-5 first hole (he teed off on the back nine). He is one shot behind Leonard, who is playing with him on the Palm Course.
Pernice is 136th on the money list but made it clear that he wants to retain PGA TOUR membership for 2010. Since missing the cut in the Turning Stone Resort Championship, he's fired nine rounds in the 60s, including a 69 on Thursday at the Magnolia Course that featured a holed approach shot on the 11th. Watch the shot
| Oldest winners in PGA TOUR history | |||||||||||||||||||||
| At 50 years, two months, Tom Pernice Jr. is trying to become the sixth oldest winner in history: | |||||||||||||||||||||
|
IMPROVED WEATHER FOR SCORING (10:05 a.m.) -- Sunny skies greeted the field on Friday, a welcome sight for players who dealt with atypical Orlando conditions in Round 1.
The winds are still up -- around 10-15 mph -- but the weather is expected to improve as the tournament heads into the weekend.
The field averaged 71.172 on the Magnolia Course in Round 1, nearly a stroke higher than last year's average of 70.378.
WILD, WEIRD FRONT NINE FOR LEONARD (10 a.m.) -- Justin Leonard has already taken the lead over on the Palm Course, where he birdied seven of the first nine holes.
He went out in 30 after teeing off on No. 10, but it could have been lower -- he bogeyed the par-5 14th.
Leonard's start confirms what our John Maginnes said on Thursday -- players who broke 70 on Thursday at Magnolia have a slight advantage on Friday at Palm. Because scoring conditions are improved on Friday, players playing the Palm Course have a real shot at shooting 61 or 62. That wasn't the case in Round 1, when high winds limited birdie chances for the field on both courses.
| Groups We're Watching | ||||||||||||
|
| Live Essentials | ||||
|
Shop your favorite brand name golf equipment and accessories at SHOP.PGATOUR.COM
FANTASY
PGATOUR.com is part of Turner Sports Digital, part of the Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network 