Matt Dobyns takes halfway lead at the PGA Professional National Championship
Matt Dobyns carded a four-under par 68 in the second round of the PGA Professional National Championship, at the Bayonet & Black Horse Golf Club, Seaside, California, to take the lead on Monday, June 25, 2012.
Dobyns got off to a confident start and recorded two consecutive birdies on the second and third hole. The par-three sixth hole witnessed him record the only bogey of the tournament so far.
Another three birdies on the back nine of the course allowed him to take a three-stroke margin over Paul Scaletta and the overnight leader Mike Small, both of whom carded even par and one-over par scores, respectively.
"I'm just happy to be here more than anything else," said Dobyns. "Really I'm just happy to be playing golf, whether it's in this or at home with members. It doesn't matter what the venue is for me. I just love being out there".
"The fact that I'm playing well makes it a little more enjoyable, certainly. I get to play two more days and I'm excited about that".
Small looked a bit disappointed, especially after recording an impressive six-under par 66 in the opening round on Sunday.
According to him, the winds were really strong on the second day and the greens were dried out that cost him the lead in the end.
Moreover, he admitted that he was failed to pay attention to detail and missed several opportunities that could have earned him a good score while entering the final two rounds of the event.
"I salvaged my round with two birdies coming home, but for the most part, the things I did well yesterday, I didn't do well today," Small said. “The wind was more difficult today than yesterday. The greens are drying out".
He now has an overall score of five-under par 139 after two rounds. Brian Cairns, Stuart Smith, Jim Estes and Kelly Mitchum were further a stroke back to share the fourth spot on the leaderboard.
In the meantime, the defending champion David Hutsell carded a two-over par 74, following an even-par 72 in the opening round, to tie for the 32nd position.
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