-I caught up with Bart's brother Brad after his round. Brad was in good position after the first day with a solid 66, but couldn't get much going en route to a Saturday 72. Brad had no trouble admitting that Bart was the better player in the family at this point, as Brad is getting up there in years (age 58 now) and has not done better than T-32 this year in an individual event.
Brad had all the praise in the world for his brother, talking about how the tour needs more guys like Bart - who understand the importance of developing relationships with communities and interacting with fans. He expressed hope that Bart's wrist can hold up so he can make more of an impact out here on the Champions Tour - he said Bart's talent has been under the radar so far, and the injuries have played a huge role in that. Brad didn't want to commit to staying for the entirety of the final round on Sunday, to potentially see his brother win, but left the door very much open for doing so.
"I've got to talk to my wife," Brad said. "But I don't see why I wouldn't."
Brad was on site for Bart's first PGA Tour victory - the 2004 Valero Texas Open - when he was in the field as well. So it wouldn't be the first, but it would be the first in quite a while.
-Joey Sindelar backed up his opening 2-under 70 with another 70, and enters Sunday in a tie for 31st at 4-under. On the road back to full health after back surgery, Sindelar admitted he was feeling like a golfer again by being disappointed with his Saturday round - where he got to 4-under on the day at one point but fell back with late bogeys. The Horseheads native has lost an estimated 50 pounds since the surgery last November - bringing him down into the 180-190 pound range - saying the need for surgery made him realize he needed to get into better shape.
Sindelar tried to make a quick comeback by playing two Florida events in February, but realized he wasn't near ready yet and took some more time off for rehab until June. This is his fourth event back this time around, after changing his swing to accommodate his new health situation, and so far he is faring the best by far - he went 79, MC, T-69 in his first three events back. Even if he plays poorly in the final round, he should easily finish inside the top 60.
"It's fun to see that it's definitely been a step forward each of the weeks I've been able to play," Sindelar said. "Certainly there can't be as big a leap as I had the first few weeks, because I started from way, way back. This is what we've been hoping for, and I'm very happy."
Sindelar played with former college teammate and road roommate John Cook on Friday, and Cook said he could tell his friend's game was getting back in shape because 'he was smiling again.' A smiling Sindelar is good for the Champions Tour, and even if he falters on Sunday, the home crowd is sure to keep him in good spirits as he makes the walk up 18.
-Jeff Brehaut played a bogey-free second round, but couldn't quite keep the pedal to the metal enough to make a serious move. Starting the day six back of overnight leader Kenny Perry, Brehaut shot 3-under 69 to fall 12 back of Bart Bryant.
The win won't be on Brehaut's mind in the final round, but he will be fully invested to make as much money as he can. After waiting until his 50th birthday in June to start playing, Brehaut has a limited amount of tournaments to make the required money to crack the top 30 on the money list and keep his card for next season. So far he has two top 25s in three events, with his best effort a T-19 two weeks ago in Minnesota, but that is obviously nowhere near enough - he is currently 89th on the money list.
Making matters worse for the Pacific University grad is that the tour conducts its only reshuffle of the year after the Montreal Championship - three events from now - and he may be shuffled right out of the year-ending tournaments if he doesn't play better (not that he has been playing badly at all). He figures he needs a few top-ten finishes - at least - but feels he has the talent to win if he can put it all together.
He didn't need to look far for inspiration on Saturday, either. Brehaut was paired with Michael Allen, a guy who had a similar career trajectory in his regular-tour days - a fair bit of success without winning. Allen won his first Champions Tour event when he turned 50, the 2009 Senior PGA Championship at Canterbury outside Cleveland, and he has played well ever since, currently No. 6 on the money list.
If Allen can do it, Brehaut seemingly can do it, but life on tour can be all about timing - and unfortunately for Brehaut, his year has been short on time.
-After being visibly upset with his opening-round 71 on Friday, Fred Funk picked up the pace with a 5-under 67 on Saturday to move into a tie for 17th. Funk knew he was behind the 8-ball after his unspectacular start, however, feeling that he needed to put low rounds together if he was going to have a chance - and if nobody ran away with it.
But Bart Bryant has seemingly ran away with it, and a ten-shot comeback isn't in the cards where surely some of the second-round leaders will again go low on Sunday. With wife Sharon on the bag - only of one two times all year she works as caddie, she said - he will simply be working on his game and hoping to thrill the fans with some quality shots. He is working, too - seen walking from the practice area to the locker room more than two hours after he completed his second round, patting Duffy Waldorf on the back on the way.
Despite not being in contention, Funk had some fun with the crowd on Saturday. Paired with the popular Jim Thorpe, Funk watched his tee shot roll up a ride on the par-3 fourth. Recognizing the presence of the ridge, he called for the ball to roll back down near the hole. After a few seconds, it did, to within ten feet.
"It must be a male ball," Funk said, looking back in his wife's direction. "Because it will listen to you."
Seconds later, Thorpe watched his ball do the exact same thing, rolling down the ridge and to within five feet. And Thorpe's thoughts were in sync with his playing companion.
"Male ball," Thorpe said. "It listened."
Sharon simply smiled and shook her head.
No comments:
Post a Comment