Tiger Woods held it together early, then fired his way into contention Friday at steamy Congressional Country Club in the second round of the AT&T National. With a 3-under-par 68, Woods (72-68 – 140) is within five shots of the lead going into Saturday’s third round.
“It’s just one of those days where you just stay patient,” Woods said. “I shot 68 today, which was I thought a very good score.”
Hunter Mahan (70-65 — 135) holds a two-stroke lead over veterans Robert Garrigus (70-67 – 137), Jimmy Walker (68-69 – 137), and former Virginia Tech star Brendon de Jonge (68-69 – 137) with Pat Perez (69-69 – 138), Rod Pampling (71-67 – 138), Vijay Singh (68-70 — 138), Stewart Cink (70-68 — 138), and Seung-Yul Noh (70-68 – 138) three shots back.
With temperatures reaching 100 degrees at 4 p.m. and the course baking out, the afternoon wave of players had a serious challenge at firm, fast, hot Congressional.
“I don’t know how much worse it can get out there. It’s ridiculous,” Pampling said. “It’s just so hot, you’re looking for wind anywhere, shade. It’s just a hot, hot, hot day.”
With a 7:50 a.m. starting time, Woods avoided some of the heat, but he couldn’t avoid the lush Congressional rough. On his first nine, on back-to-back holes, Nos. 14 and 15, Woods found his drive in deep grass and had no choice but to hack out to the fairway.
“I’ve gotten two or three lies where I thought really good about it,” Woods said of the rough. “The rest of them, I’ve got to figure out, do I lay up, do I take a chance and try to get the ball near the green, though I know I can’t get it on the green.”
Laying up was a good choice as Woods hit accurate wedge shots that set up par putts of 3 and 6 feet respectively. On the next hole, a par 5, Woods pounded a 339-yard drive and made a 48-foot, double-breaking putt for eagle.
“The pars at 14 and 15, were something I needed to have happen,” Woods said. “Then I was rewarded for all that hard work with an eagle.”
Woods played the final five holes in 2-under, but it could have been better as he missed birdie putts of 10, 16, and 18 feet. The ones he made were courtesy of continued brilliance with his wedges as he hit shots to within 7 feet at No. 5 and 3 feet at No. 8. Woods would have liked to have added birdies at No. 6, where he hit his approach off pine straw and into a greenside bunker, and No. 9, where he hit a 4-iron short of the green.
Overall, however, it was a good day on the greens for Woods who needed 27 putts after taking 29 on Thursday.
“I felt very good about what I’m doing,” Woods said. “Notah Begay and I were working on a few things the other day and liked what I was doing. Today I felt very comfortable.”
With this shot off pine straw at No. 6, Tiger Woods put himself in position to make a birdie, but failed to get up and down from a bunker. Photo by Kevin Dunleavy
