John Daly 6 back with 18 to play in Champions debut
If John Daly is going to win in his debut on the 50-plus PGA Tour Champions, he’s going to have to overcome a six-shot deficit.
Daly shot 1-over 73 at The Woodlands C.C. in the second round of the Insperity Invitational near Houston on Saturday, and, at 1-under 143, now trails Jeff Maggert and Jesper Parnevik by a half-dozen heading into the final round.
On a tour where low scores are somewhat commonplace, the deficit isn’t so much the issue as is the fact that Daly is tied for 21st .
Daly’s round was a solid one if he excluded the middle four holes, all of which he bogeyed. He birdied the final two holes to drop only nine spots on the leaderboard on the day. He’s thinking that some changes in his bag and his approach could help on Sunday. He’s tinkering with putters in hopes of finding one that fits his eye. He’s also planning to use his length to his advantage.
“My chipping wasn’t very good today, but, you know, I’m under par and I think (7 under par) is leading, you never know what can happen tomorrow,” he said. “Maybe try to get maybe a little more aggressive with the driver, hit it a little bit more, get some more wedges in the holes and give myself a chance.”
Parnevik, who is looking for his first Champions win and his first win of any kind since 2001, is happy to be in the hunt.
“It’s great to feel the butterflies come, you know, alive,” he said Saturday. “All of a sudden, you go, ‘Oh, I have to focus on these shots.’ It’s different, and, you know, it’s going to be. It’s going to be funtomorrow, just to be able to have a chance to win and so, I mean, it’s been a while.”
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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