By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM BETHESDA, Md. -- It was
touch-and-go for a while there, but the Big Three played their way
into the weekend Friday afternoon. World No. 2 Lee Westwood ripped
through a second-round 68 to go into the weekend at plus-1, while
third-ranked Martin Kaymer shot a 70 and is at 2 over. World
No. 1 Luke Donald struggled coming in, but shot 72 to settle in at
4 over, which is expected to be the cut. Donald considered himself
lucky to make the cut. "I struggled on the back nine both days and
that comes down to not hitting enough fairways and not hitting
enough greens,'' he said. "I hit 50 percent of fairways this week
and you are always going to struggle on a course like this.
I’ve got to find something on the weekend and shoot a couple
of good rounds and see what happens. Rory is well ahead but you
keep fighting and see what you can do." When asked about chasing
leader Rory McIlroy and what advice he might give him, Westwood
chuckled. "I'm supposed to beat him over the next two days,'' he
said. "I'm hardly going to give him advice, am I?" Westwood has his
eye on Y.E. Yang, who is in second. "Trying to catch him, because
if I'm going to win the tournament, then I'm going to need Rory to
play poorly over the weekend,'' Westwood said. "I might play great
and shoot 11‑under par and get to 10, but he's still got to
shoot ‑‑ if he shoots level at the weekend then he
wins. But when you've got a six‑shot lead, as I know, because
I've had a few six‑shot leads, everybody gives you the
tournament almost, so in everybody's mind he's probably already won
it. They're probably debating whether he's already won it on
TV." Perhaps. But what they are doing is wondering just who will be
around for the weekend. With play suspended at 8:04 p.m. and seven
groups still on the course, it looks as though some prominent names
will be headed home. The final cut will be made Saturday after the
second round concludes. Bubba Watson (4 over) is the only one of
the four Golf Boys to make the cut. Hunter Mahan and Rickie Fowler
are just under the current line at 5 over, along with Adam Scott
and former British Open champ Stewart Cink, who bogeyed his final
hole. Ian Poulter (6 over) landed in Orlando in time for dinner --
he tweeted it -- and had company there at 6 over with two-time U.S.
Open champ Ernie Els and Ben Crane. Former PGA champ David Toms and
former U.S. Open Jim Furyk went home at 7 over par, as did former
Masters champ Angel Cabrera at 8 over.