ROARING THROUGH BEHIND 8 BIRDIES, SABBATINI SHOOTS 65 TO TAKE LEAD.Byline: Dave Shelburne Staff Writer PACIFIC PALISADES Palisades, cliffs along the west bank of the Hudson River, NE N.J. and SE N.Y., extending from N of Jersey City, N.J., to the vicinity of Piermont, N.Y., with a general altitude of from 350 ft to 550 ft (107–168 m). - Rory Sabbatini Rory Mario Trevor Sabbatini (born April 2, 1976) is a South African professional golfer. Rory Sabbatini was born in Durban, South Africa. He started playing golf at age 4, but concentrated on it from age 12. made it look easy, as he has for much of a West Coast Swing that has produced his best start in eight PGA Tour The PGA Tour is an organization that operates the USA's main professional golf tours. It is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA. Its name is officially rendered in all caps as “PGA TOUR". seasons. The 29-year-old South African, who has not finished below 20th in five previous tour stops this year, rolled in eight birdies in an early morning round of 65 to build a four-stroke midway lead in the Nissan Open The Northern Trust Open, formally known as the Nissan Open and originally known as the Los Angeles Open, is a regular golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in February in Pacific Palisades, California. at Riviera Country Club The Riviera Country Club is a country club with a championship golf course. It is located in Pacific Palisades, California, within the city limits of Los Angeles, California. The country club opened in 1926, with George C. Thomas, Jr. as the course architect. . ``Everything is feeling pretty good,'' Sabbatini said after a 67-65-132 start that left his closest competitors - Craig Barlow Craig Alan Barlow (born July 23, 1972) is a professional golfer on the PGA Tour. Barlow was born in Henderson, Nevada. He turned professional in 1995. In 2006, he was partnered with golfing legend Jeff Sluman for the final round of the U.S. Open. (67-69) and Thomas Levet Thomas Levet (born September 5, 1968) is a French professional golfer. Levet was born in Paris, France. He turned professional in 1988 and won the French PGA Championship that year, but he had to wait for a decade for his first win on the European Tour, which came at the (68-68) well back at 136 and seven others tied at 137. ``I've been playing nicely, managing to get the ball close to the hole, give myself opportunities and making the most of those opportunities.'' Then came the rain - for the eighth consecutive year in this event - and with it considerably more drama midway through the field. Tiger Woods  Editing of this page by unregistered or newly registered users is currently disabled. , the world's No. 1 player and former Southern
California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, junior sensation bidding for his first title in nine Nissan
starts as a professional, bogeyed his final two holes in a
late-afternoon storm and found himself on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of missing the cut.
Woods (69-74), who has never missed a cut as a pro at the Nissan and has missed just four in 185 previous starts since joining the PGA Tour in 1996, wound up advancing on the number, when a late bogey by Doug Barron dropped the cut-line to 143. Woods, caught on course without an umbrella, wound up wet and cold but liking the way he hit the ball off the tee, if less pleased with the rest of his game in a round that produced five bogeys and two birdies. ``I drove it great today,'' he said. ``I hit it great, and I hit my irons just terrible. And I just couldn't shake anything, either. I had a hard time on the greens.'' But he's still playing. ``Hopefully, I hit my irons better (today), because I hit the ball great off the tee ... which I haven't done in a long time,'' said Woods, who felt he did some wonderful things'' after working with his driver in front of a mirror Thursday night. ``Unfortunately, the strengths of my game are my iron play and my putting, and all of a sudden, I didn't do that today.'' Ryder Cup Ryder Cup Biennial team golf event first held in 1927. It was originally played between teams of golfers from the U.S. and Britain; since 1979 players opposing the U.S. have been chosen from all of Europe. The trophy was donated by the British seed merchant Samuel Ryder. captain Tom Lehman Thomas Edward Lehman (born March 7, 1959) is an American professional golfer. Lehman was born in Austin, Minnesota but Alexandria, Minnesota is credited as his official Minnesota hometown. stayed close to the lead with a second-round 70 that tied him with Trevor Immelman Trevor John Immelman (born 16 December 1979) is a South African golfer. Immelman was born in Cape Town, South Africa. He took up golf at the age of five. He won the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 1998. Immelman turned professional in 1999. (who included a hole- in-one during his 70), Lee Westwood Lee John Westwood (born 24 April 1973) is an English professional golfer. Career outline Born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, Westwood began to play golf aged 13 with a half set bought by grandparents. (66) and four others. Bob Estes (71), Jason Schultz (70), Tim Clark (67) and first-round co- leader Dean Wilson shared the fourth spot with midway totals of 137. Cut casualties included Valencia resident and 2005 U.S. Open folk hero Jason Gore, whose second round 71 left him with a 144 and a stroke shy of advancing in his hometown tour stop. Others missing the cut included Chris DiMarco (71-144), John Daly (77-147) and Northridge resident Duffy Waldorf (77-147). Ernie Els, the 1999 Nissan Open champion, who has finished first or second in three of his past five starts since recovering from knee surgery last summer, advanced with a 72 that left him tied for 50th at 142. ``I had no energy this morning,'' said Els, who made the cut for a 25th consecutive tournament, the longest streak on the U.S. as well as European tour. ``I'm not trying to keep the cut streak alive,'' he said, ``I'm trying to get back into the tournament, you know. ... If you make it to the weekend, you get half a chance. That's what I was trying to do, but this morning, it was ugly early.'' It was beautiful mostly all day for Sabbatini, who shook off bogeys on his first hole (Riviera's No. 10) and on No. 3 but played in weather as good as his season play has been. He credited some off-season exercise for some of his success. ``I worked out with a trainer,'' he said. ``I think that helped me remain a little more fresh with my game when I got back out here on tour.'' Sabbatini said he's noticed the benefit of that conditioning at Riviera after extended play early in this season, when he played five consecutive weeks entering the Nissan. ``My body felt pretty fatigued,'' he said. ``This is my sixth week in a row. I'm already pretty tired (but) I've managed to find the energy to maintain my concentration out there and stay focused.'' Distance control on the putting has been another plus for Sabbatini during his first five starts, when his $1,266,294 in earnings exceeds his yearly winning totals in six of his previous seven seasons on tour. ``The thing that I've actually been pretty fortunate about this year is, you know, when I have had long putts I've managed to keep them pretty close to the holes,'' he said. ``You know, over a 72-hole period, if you're hitting a lot of putts and you keep leaving yourself three-footers, it will wear you down more. ``I've been able to avoid that this year. I think because I'm less physically and emotionally drained out here.'' Dave Shelburne, (818) 713-3609 dave.shelburne(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos, 2 boxes Photo: (1 -- color) Rory Sabbatini shot a 65 - including eight birdies - to take a four-stroke lead heading into the third round today at the Nissan Open. Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer (2) 1999 Nissan Open champion Ernie Els advanced with a 72 that left him tied for 50th at 142. Stephen Dunn/Getty Images Box: (1) NISSAN OPEN (2) From the FRINGE |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion