[ SONY OPEN ]
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Steve Allan used some body English as he barely missed a birdie putt on hole No. 17 yesterday at the Sony Open. He went on to eagle the 18th to finish in first place at 11 under.
Els breezes in
second round
Those who have done well here in the past at the $4.8 million Sony Open in Hawaii hope to do well again. And after looking at yesterday's second-round leaderboard, don't be surprised if a former winner emerges as champion once more.
Defending champion Ernie Els led the charge of former winners with a blistering 6-under 64 to move within two shots of the lead. Els wasn't much of a factor at the Mercedes Championships last week, in part because he took five weeks off prior to coming to Hawaii.
But he was in a zone yesterday and could be money, now that it's the weekend.
"Yeah, I'm in good shape," Els said. "You know, I think I had a good day. I kept my patience. Even yesterday, I played good. I just missed quite a few putts. Everybody is going to miss putts.
"It's a course where conditions like it is, you're going to see some low scores. This golf course needs the breeze from somewhere to make it tough, and at the moment, it's just dead calm. Hoping for a little bit more breeze over the weekend to make it a little bit tougher."
That would suit several other former winners just fine. Former Sony Open champs Jerry Kelly and Paul Azinger are in at 7-under 133, some four strokes off the pace. John Huston, who won the last Hawaiian Open in record fashion, is another shot back at 6-under 134, and Corey Pavin, who won the Hawaiian Open in 1986 and 1987, is still in the hunt as well at 5-under 135.
Throw in 1990 Hawaiian Open titleholder David Ishii at 3-under 137, and they ought to throw a party for all the former champs; that is, if they could fit them in one tent.
"I don't think it's as difficult as it usually gets in the Hawaiian Open," Ishii said, "because the greens are not hard and they are not running real fast. So, if you're hitting good irons, this is the time to take advantage of the greens."
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Michelle Wie was congratulated after finishing on the 18th hole by Hilo's Kevin Hayashi and Craig Bowden.
Back on the tube: If you didn't get enough of Michelle Wie on the golf course the past two days, try her on for size as she climbs into the ESPN-TV booth today to review her performance this week.
Wie will be with Roger Twibell and Ian Baker-Finch as the national broadcast enters its third round. Wie has also done some course walking and may be asked to join Andy North or Charlie Rymer as they dissect the leaders of the opening full-field act on the PGA Tour.
The 14-year-old Punahou School ninth-grader wowed them in the interview room following yesterday's round that left her one shot shy of making the cut. One reporter asked, "At your age, most kids are trying to get their license. What's your next big goal?"
Wie deadpanned, "Getting my license."
Micheel on fire: PGA Championship winner Shaun Micheel established the best birdie-eagle streak of the young season when he went 4 under through a three-hole stretch, needing only one putt to do so. He began his round with an eagle on the par-4 10th by holing a wedge from 60 yards out.
He followed that up with an 11-foot birdie on the par-3 11th and holed a chip from off the green on the par-4 12th. Micheel (64) made the biggest move of the day, jumping up 79 spots from a tie for 105th to a tie for 26th. Frank Lickliter II also made a big move. His 8-under 62 moved him 76 spots from a tie for 81st to a tie for fifth.
Making the cut: There were 28 PGA Tour rookies who began their official careers this week. Of the group, 11 made the cut. They were D.J. Brigman (6-under 134), Kevin Na (5-under 135), Jason Bohn (5-under 135), Ryan Palmer (4-under 136), Tjaart Van Der Walt (3-under 137), Andre Stolz (2-under 138), Arjun Atwal (1-under 139), Tom Carter (1-under 139), Jason Dufner (1-under 139), Ken Duke (1-under 139) and Lucas Glover (1-under 139). Of that group, only Na and Atwal were not members of the 2003 Nationwide Tour.
First is No. 1: The opening hole remained the most difficult after 287 scores were posted through yesterday's second round. The average score was 4.359, with only 11 birdies and 85 bogeys. Add 13 doubles and one triple, and it's easy to see why the 488-yard hole offers up so much resistance.
The easiest hole remains the par-5 18th. There were 19 eagles and 162 birdies through the first 287 rounds of golf. There have been only 10 bogeys this week, one double and one triple. The scoring average through the first two rounds is 69.638.
