Birdies landing at Honda Classic

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/03/2012 (5294 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Justin Rose keeps preaching par is a good score at PGA National. Thanks to a string of birdies Friday, he carved out another 66 to share the lead with Tom Gillis in the Honda Classic.

Three birdies over the last five holes also kept Rory McIlroy in the chase for No. 1 in the world.

“Still a lot of golf left — 36 holes,” McIlroy said after a 67 in the breezy, balmy afternoon. “I just need to keep doing the same things, try to drive the ball in the fairway and give myself loads of opportunities and try and take a few. Because you don’t need to make tons of birdies out here.”

Magic

Maybe not, but that was the recipe for Brian Harman, who shattered the course record by three shots and even flirted with golf’s magic number before he had to settle for par on the 543-yard closing hole for a 61.

Birdies also helped Tiger Woods, though not enough to offset a tee shot into the water on the par-3 fifth for a double bogey in his round of 68 that put him seven shots out of the lead.

Rose made five birdies in a nine-hole stretch in the middle of his round and was at 10 under until back-to-back bogeys, an example of how this course can stop momentum quickly. He wound up at 8-under 132 with Gillis, a 43-year-old journeyman who had a 64 and is atop the leaderboard for the first time after any round of a PGA Tour event.

“You can’t play 36 holes around here and expect to come away without any bruises at all,” Rose said.

McIlroy, who would have to win the Honda Classic to replace Luke Donald atop the world ranking, was at 7 under along with Dicky Pride, who birdied his last hole for a 67.

Harman, Jimmy Walker (67) and Monday qualifier Vaughn Taylor (66) were another shot back.

The cut was at 141, the lowest since the Honda Classic moved to PGA National five years ago.

None of the Canadian entries made the cut. David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., followed his opening round 71 with a 73 to finish at 144. Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., had a 146 total. Calgary’s Stephen Ames was another shot back at 147, and Mike Weir of Bright’s Grove, Ont., signed for a 78, leaving him with a two-round score of 153.

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Proof of the low scoring came from Harman, the rookie from Georgia who never imagined standing in the 18th fairway with a chance to shoot 59 with an eagle on the par 5. He gave it his best shot, leaving a hybrid into the front bunker in an attempt to have a reasonable putt. Harman wound up missing a five-footer and had to settle for par, though his 61 still broke the course record by three shots.

“Just one of those crazy days where everything comes together,” Harman said. “Got off to a really hot start and just kept the pedal down all day. It was awesome.”

For Woods, it was a matter of hitting the gas and slamming on the brakes.

Woods stuffed an approach inside three feet for birdie, then had to scramble for bogey. He bounced a tee shot off a spectator and turned that into birdie, only to hit his next tee shot into the water for double bogey. He closed with two birdies.

— The Associated Press