Round 2, Transitions Championship

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Mar. 20, 2009
By PGATOUR.COM staff

The first groups will soon tee off in today's second round of the Transitions Championship. Here's how it sets up:

Groups We're Watching

Tee time	Players
8:27 a.m. ET No. 1		Nick Watney, Brian Gay, Trevor Immelman Masters champ Immelman says he's finally finding his stride. A big Friday could have him atop the leaderboard. Track 'em
8:27 a.m. ET No. 10		Y.E. Yang, Kenny Perry, Retief Goosen Perry's short game served him well Thursday. If he can keep it going, he'll have a great chance this weekend. Track 'em
1:02 p.m. ET No. 1		K.J. Choi, Jim Furyk, Rory Sabbatini Furyk's Thursday 65 was his low round of the year. After starting this season unusually late, he's on a roll. Track 'em

EXPERT PREVIEW: PGA TOUR Network on-site correspondent Bob Stevens previews Friday's second round:

Friday's forecast

Partly Cloudy
Temp: 83 high/59 low
The skies will be a mix of sun and clouds throughout the day. The winds will blow in out of the north at 10 to 20 mph.

How much do golfers believe in momentum? We'll find out this afternoon. Scott McCarron roared back from a dicey start with birdies at Nos. 16, 17 and 18 to finish his opening round at 2 under and then promptly told our PGA TOUR Network live crew that the most important thing was to forget about it because Friday was a new day.

Hopefully, rookie sensation Jeff Klauk took the same thought to heart after finishing bogey-bogey-bogey at his last three holes to finish at even par. McCarron tees off at 12:51 p.m. ET, Klauk has to wait until 2:15 p.m.

About the only thing that will break a player's routine is a very small child. After Jonathan Byrd fired a fine, opening 67, he admitted to PGA TOUR Network listeners that he probably needed a little more practice from Copperhead's deepening and thickening rough. But he also admitted that he'd promised to spend Thursday afternoon at the pool with his 2-1/2 year old Jackson. Guessing that the pool won out, we'll see if Byrd keeps it in the fairways when he tees it up at 1:33 p.m.

Sure, March Madness spills over onto the golf course this week. Dozens of players came from schools playing in the NCAA Tourney (apologies, for once, to Kentucky Wildcat Steve Flesch). While there's no gambling on TOUR, there aren't any laws being broken by the occasional bracket sheet in the locker room, and you can't really blame Ryder Cup teammates Kenny Perry (Western Kentucky) and Steve Stricker (Illinois) from staying up well past midnight to cheer on their alma maters. Perry told us a green piece of paper with Andrew Jackson's picture on it was riding on the game, but go easy on both of them this morning as they teed off a little sleep-deprived in back-to-back groups.

Stat of the day

After his opening 65, Jim Furyk grabbed the outright first-round lead in a PGA TOUR event for the first time since the 2005 Barclays Classic, where he also shot 65. Furyk has held or shared the first-round lead 18 times in his career, and gone on to win four of those.

NOTEWORTHY NUGGETS:
• Furyk's 65 is his sixth consecutive round in the 60s, dating back to the final round of the Northern Trust Open, where he shot 68. Furyk posted four rounds in the 60s at last week's World Golf Championships-CA Championship, finishing third.

• Stephen Ames posted 5-under 66 Thursday, his lowest first round since a 65 at the 2006 Bank of America Colonial. This is Ames' first round in the 60s since a final-round 63 at The 50th Bob Hope Classic hosted by Arnold Palmer, where he finished tied for fifth, in January.

• Japanese teen sensation Ryo Ishikawa (69) scored his first round in the 60s on the PGA TOUR after starting Thursday with consecutive birdies at holes 1 and 2. Ishikawa shot 73 in the first round of the Northern Trust Open, his PGA TOUR debut, and was tied for 113th at the end of the day. He is tied for 15th after Thursday's first round.

• Seven players who finished in the top 10 at last week's Puerto Rico Open presented by Banco Popular made it into the field at the Transitions Championship. Michael Bradley, last week's winner who still resides in his native Tampa, withdrew early in the week with a hip injury. Among the other six players, J.P. Hayes had a 71, Jason Day and Greg Chalmers carded 72s, Joe Durant and D.A. Points had 73s, and Kent Jones carded a 74.

Thus far at Innisbrook

Round	Leader	Low round (par 71)	Key links
	Jim Furyk (-6)	65: Jim Furyk	Daily Wrap-Up \| Live Report TOUR Insider \| Notebook

The Film Room

	PGA TOUR Today Win McMurry updates action from the first round of the Transitions Championship and previews what to watch for in the second round. Watch it
	Shot of the day Troy Matteson chipped in from the greenside bunker to save par on the par-5 14th hole during Thursday's first round of the Transitions Championship. Watch it
	Round 1 highlights Jim Furyk put together a stellar 6-under 65 Thursday to build a one-stroke lead after the opening round at Innisbrook. Watch it