Red-hot Kisner grabs 36-hole lead in Panama City

text size

Martin/Getty Images

Kevin Kisner was a four-time All-American at the University of Georgia.

Panama City, PANAMA -- Former University of Georgia Bulldog Kevin Kisner parlayed a blistering front-nine 28 into a second-round 64 and sole possession of the 36-hole lead at the Panama Claro Championship, the third stop on the 2010 Nationwide Tour schedule.

RELATED

Leaderboard: Scores
Round 3 Tee Times
Nationwide Tour Insider
Visit Panama

Kisner three-putted the final hole at the Panama Golf Club Friday afternoon, but still managed a 6-under score that put him at 9-under 131 and one stroke in front of 2008 champion Scott Dunlap (67), Fran Quinn (66) and Argentina's Julio Zapata (66).

South Carolina rookie Mark Anderson (64) is two strokes back at 7-under 133 along with Brian Smock (67), Luke List (67), Scott Brown (68), Sweden's Jonas Blixt (65) and veteran Marco Dawson (67).

Kisner, a four-time All-America honoree with the Bulldogs, put together one of those magical runs as he began his day -- seven birdies on his opening nine for a 28, one stroke off the Tour's all-time lowest nine-hole score.

"Everything was perfect. Every number was good. I was hitting it close and making some putts," said Kisner, who became the 23rd player in the Tour's 21-year history to post a score of 28. "It seemed easy on the front. I was just playing. I was having a blast."

Maintaining that pace might have been too much to ask on a golf course that had never yielded a single-day scoring average below par in seven years -- until today, when the average finished at 69.704.

"You know, 59 came into my head on nine green," he admitted. "I said 'This is a par-70,' but then I figured I shouldn't be thinking about that anymore."

Kisner had chances, but lipped out a couple putts for birdie before cashing in again at No. 15, putting him at 8-under for the day and on pace to break the course record of 63 set in 2006 by tournament winner Tripp Isenhour.

The 25-year old South Carolinian stumbled with a pair of bogeys on his final three holes but wasn't too disappointed with the results.

"My swing has been really good all year and I've been hitting the ball good," said Kisner, who started the year with a tie for seventh at the Michael Hill New Zealand Open. "I knew I was close and I knew I needed to get something like today going."

Dunlap heads the list of Kisner's closest challengers. The Georgia resident missed a couple of birdie chances early before settling in for a relatively uneventful four birdie, one bogey afternoon.

"I made it easy on myself," he said. "I just hit two bad short irons in the middle of the round when I got a little tired and it cost me a dropped shot. Those are the shots you're thinking you should get within 10 feet and I'm missing the greens."

Dunlap rolled in a 15-footer birdie on his final hole to close within one of Kisner, his playing partner in Saturday's third round. The 46-year old is in a comfort zone on this course and he know it well.

"You stand there and have a pretty good feel for it," he said. "It doesn't mean it's always going to happen but when you don't feel confused it's a green light going forward and you know what to do, that's a start anyway."

Round 2 notes:

• Ted Brown and Tom Scherrer both withdrew during the round because of illness.

• Canadian David Hearn made a hole-in-one today at the 144-yard, 8th hole. It was the second ace for Hearn at this event -- he had one at No. 17 in the second round of 2007. For Hearn, it's his seventh career ace (five in competition). Strangely, all seven of his aces have come with a 9-iron. "If the yardage doesn't say 145-ish, I'm done," joked Hearn afterward.

• David Hearn had two eagles today. One came at the par-5, 5th hole and the second was an ace at the par-3, 8th. Hearn becomes only the third player in the tournament's seven-year history to register two eagles in a single round and the first since 2006.

• Kevin Kisner's 7-under 28 is the lowest front-nine score in the tournament's seven-year history. The previous low was a 5-under 30, set by Ryan Hietala in 2005 and matched by five others.

• Kevin Kisner's 7-under 28 is the lowest 9-hole score on the Nationwide Tour this year.

• Kevin Kisner's three-putt bogey at the final hole kept him from tying the course record of 63, set by Tripp Isenhour in 2006 and matched that year by both Kevin Gessino-Kraft and Tim O'Neal.

• A total of 62 players made the 36-hole cut, which came at 1-under par 141, three shots lower than the previous low cut mark of 2-over in 2006.

• After not seeing any measurable rain since Dec. 29 of last year, the Panama Golf Club has gotten rain showers each of the first two days. Friday's rain was lighter than Thursday's and confined to the morning hours.

• Of the top 40 players to make the cut, only two posted above-par scores in the second round -- Miguel Caballo (71-136) and Tag Ridings (71-137).