Jerry Pate (-5) was two strokes ahead of the field when round two ended on Friday. By the time rain had halted play this afternoon he was one stroke above par and in a tie with Dana Quigley (-5) and Mike Reid (-5) for first. Reid birdied his opening hole and continued consistent play with pars through the 10th hole while Quigley posted four birdies and only one bogey through 11 holes to jump into the first-place tie.
Pate expressed confidence in his ability to hold up during Sunday’s extended day. “I’m in pretty good shape so there won’t be a fatigue factor — it’s not going to come into my game. I’m looking forward to playing.” That sounds good coming from a guy who had to drop out of competitive golf for so many years because of shoulder trouble.
Continue reading “Rain Halts Round Three at Senior PGA Championship”
Hit it straight off the tee and hit a lot of greens. That is the key for Justin Leonard so far this week at the FedEx St. Jude Classic. He shot a five-under par round of 65 on Friday to push his lead to five strokes over a surging Fredrik Jacobson. Leonard is currently ninth in driving accuracy and tied for first on greens in regulation. Add that to the fact he is fourth in putting, and it’s easy to see why the Texan is cruising so far in Memphis. 
The second round of the Senior PGA Championship on Friday was moving day for many players in the field. Most notably Jerry Pate whom was four under for the day leaving him with a one stroke lead. First round leader Graham Marsh had a somewhat disappointing day finishing at two-under par for the day, a score that could have easily been worse. Hale Irwin was also left in Pate’s dust after finishing three-over on the day, six shots behind for the tournament.
The revamped TPC at Southwind is normally one of the tougher courses on tour but that did not seem to be the case for the morning tee times of the 
Graham Marsh looked impressive in his first round at Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, Pennsylvania as he shot a 4-under 68. Marsh was able to take advantage of the warmer temperatures and clear skies on Thursday to take the first round lead at the 
The winds didn’t seem to have much of an effect on 32-year old swede Sophie Gustafson. Sophie turned in a 66 today with a spectacular round of eight birdies and only two bogeys on 9 and 11. She made back-to-back birdies on the 5th and 6th holes, again at the 12th and 13th holes and a triple threat with birdies on 15, 16 and 17. Gustafson putted only 24 times today and drove the ball over 300 yards. She is third in driving average on the LPGA tour this season. “You’ve got to be aggressive here,” said Gustafson.
As we all know, 
David Toms finished in a tie for third last week at Colonial.