Ryan Palmer and Sergio Garcia lead at HP Byron Nelson Championship: Round 2 Highlights
After Jeff Overton caved in to the high winds on a difficult day at TPC Four Seasons, Ryan Palmer and Sergio Garcia moved in to grab the lead in the second round of HP Byron Nelson Championship in Texas. Palmer carded a round of 67 to finish for eight-under,
132, tied with Garcia for the lead. Palmer has had a successful season so far although he is yet to win on tour for the year. He finished fourth in Bob Hope Classic earlier in the season and closed his Masters bid for 10th place at Augusta National
this year.
"I keep surprising myself how calm I am when it's that way. This is a golf course that I've struggled on so it's nice to not to think about it, just get up and hit the shot, and if I don't hit the shots it's on me," Palmer said. "So it's nice to be free-swinging
like that."
Although a Texas native himself, Palmer does not have a shining record on TPC Four Season and is following the suggestions of his caddie James Edmondson. The 34-year-old Palmer is playing text book golf for the moment and hopes to finish on top in the final
round. He stumbled on just one bogey at 503-yard, par-4 15th, on a difficult and windy day.
Garcia remained consistent with his putting, scoring consecutive opening rounds of four-under, 66. Tied for second place yesterday, Garcia moved in contention for the top slot in the second round and poses to be a formidable challenge for the rest of the
field. The 31-year-old Spaniard has been battling a finger injury and was contemplating a pullout at the start of the tournament. He also withdrew from the British open qualifier earlier in the week and has almost lost his chances to qualify for the US open
next month.
"When I'm feeling good, even in windy conditions like today, I feel like I can control the ball flight and I can hit some good, solid shots," Garcia said. "I just need to make sure that I stay positive and just try to trust myself as much as I can."
The Spaniard is eyeing his eighth win on the tour and is hoping to reinvent his 1999 victory, when he thrashed the course record to post a stunning round of 62, which also was his professional debut tournament.
The halfway cut was placed at three-over and 74 players moved to the third round while the defending champion Jason Day just made through with his 71. Tim Petrovic (66) and Scott Piercy (69) are five shots behind the leaders while Nick Watney (68), Joe Ogilvie
(70) and Chad Collins (69) are further down the leaderboard with four-under each.
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