Crazy carpets don’t faze Furyk

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This article was published 06/06/2009 (6279 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

DUBLIN, Ohio — One last birdie for Jim Furyk put him one more stroke under par, which he found more gratifying than being in a share of the lead with Jonathan Byrd on Friday at the Memorial.

A blue sky and warm sun translated into fast greens at Muirfield Village, leading to a crammed leaderboard going into a weekend loaded with possibilities.

Tiger Woods had his worst score in nearly two years — a 2-over 74 — and still was only six shots behind.

Furyk had two bogeys from the bunker on the back nine, but finished with an eight-iron that stopped on the top shelf about eight feet away for birdie on the 18th that gave him a two-under 70.

He hasn’t been atop the leaderboard this deep into a tournament since winning the Canadian Open in 2007, his last PGA Tour victory.

Byrd had a bogey-free 68 in the morning, also making a birdie on the 18th.

Asked how he felt about being tied for the lead, Furyk replied: "I’d rather be as many under par as possible."

"I just want to go out there and play one more solid round tomorrow and hopefully sit in the same spot, and put myself in good position for Sunday’s round," said Furyk, the 2002 Memorial winner.

"I’ll just be jockeying for position and trying to play another good round."

He’ll have plenty of company.

Mike Weir of Bright’s Grove, Ont., (69) and Mark Wilson (70) were another shot back at six-under 138. The top 16 players were separated by a mere three shots going into the weekend.

Woods was not among that group, but came away from a pedestrian round with a fighting chance.

He missed only two of the generous fairways in the second round, but bogeys kept piling up with shots that were just enough long or short to present problems.

He went long on the 18th hole into rough and had no hope of getting the ball closer than 30 feet. On the par-5 fifth, he came up short and in the water, compounding the error by missing a par putt inside four feet.

"If you’re missing it on the short side, you’re not going to make pars here," Woods said after the 74, his highest score since also shooting a 74 in the second round of the 2007 British Open at Carnoustie.

"You have to make sure you hit the ball on the correct side. I didn’t do that today."

Woods was at one-under 143. That was only six shots from the lead with 36 holes to play, although he had 23 players ahead of him, a list that includes Ernie Els (70), Stewart Cink (72) and Davis Love III (68) at four-under 140.

Woods said he ran into the course superintendent, who told him the greens were running at 14 on the Stimpmeter.

Also at 140 was Luke Donald, who opened with a 64 and a three-shot lead that vanished with a 40 on his opening nine. He wound up a dozen shots worse with a 76, although he was very much in contention.

"We’re halfway home on this golf tournament. There’s a lot left," Byrd said.

 

— The Associated Press