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| June 15, 2003 | Sunday | Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1424 |
Red-hot Singh catches Furyk, Woods lurks
OLYMPIA FIELDS, June 14: Fiji’s Vijay Singh became the fourth player in U.S. Open history to card a 63 on Friday, tying Jim Furyk for the second-round lead as defending champion Tiger Woods moved ominously into contention.
In benign conditions at a receptive Olympia Fields Country Club, red-hot Singh reeled off five birdies in six holes after the turn to draw level with Furyk, who had fired a four-under-par 66 that was later matched by Woods.
“I felt good out there and played really well,” said the 40-year-old Singh, who finished at seven-under 133.
“I was pumped up and, when you feel like that, you want to do well all the time.”
Fijian Singh, who also fired a 63 in the 1993 U.S. PGA Championship at Inverness, missed birdie opportunities from around 12 feet on both 16 and 17 to cost himself the chance of shooting the first 62 at a major championship.
However, his round of 63 was the 21st to be achieved in a major and he became the second player, after Greg Norman, to have done so twice.
Only Johnny Miller, at Oakmont in 1973; Jack Nicklaus, at Baltusrol in 1980; and Tom Weiskopf, also at Baltusrol in 1980, have previously shot 63s at a U.S. Open.
The 33-year-old Furyk, who possesses one of the most unorthodox swings in the game, had earlier reeled off four birdies in a blemish-free display to set a record tournament aggregate of 133.
The previous mark of 134 was jointly held by Nicklaus, at Baltusrol in 1980; Tze-Chung Chen, at Oakland Hills in 1985; Lee Janzen, at Baltusrol in 1993; and Woods, at Pebble Beach in 2000.
Australia’s Stephen Leaney carded a two-birdie 68 to lie third with American Jonathan Byrd (66) at four-under-par 135.
Woods was a further stroke back in a share of fifth, level with Nick Price (65), Justin Leonard (70), Argentina’s Eduardo Romero (66) and Sweden’s Fredrik Jacobson (67).
World number one Woods, who eked out a scrappy 70 on Thursday, got off to a flier by sinking long-range birdie putts at the first and fourth holes to move to two under.
Although the 27-year-old American, bidding this week for his third U.S. Open crown in four years, bogeyed the par-four fifth after his approach spun sharply back off the front green, he recovered with an easy birdie-four at the 555-yard sixth.
Another birdie followed at the ninth, where he rifled his approach to just three feet, but he missed the green with his second shot at the 467-yard 11th and failed to get up and down to salvage par.
Further birdies on 13 and 16 lifted Woods to four under, where he remained.
Three-times major champion Price produced a superb display of course management on his way to a five-under-par 65, mixing six birdies with a bogey-five at the par-four 12th.
Tom Watson, who fired a scintillating five-under-par 65 on Thursday to share the first-round lead, failed to repeat the magic.
The 53-year-old American, who won the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, had to settle for a 72, and a three-under total of 137.
Sixty-eight players made Friday’s halfway cut at three-over 143, the lowest in U.S Open history.
Among those missing out were former major champions Jose Maria Olazabal (144), Paul Lawrie (149), Nick Faldo, David Duval, Rich Beem (all 150) and Davis Love III (151).
Second round scores
133 Jim Furyk 67 66, Vijay Singh (Fiji) 70 63
135 Stephen Leaney (Australia) 67 68, Jonathan Byrd 69 66
136 Justin Leonard 66 70, Fredrik Jacobson (Sweden) 69 67, Tiger Woods 70 66, Eduardo Romero (Argentina) 70 66, Nick Price (Zimbabwe) 71 65
137 Tom Watson 65 72, Robert Damron 69 68
138 Brandt Jobe 70 68, Dan Forsman 71 67, Ian Leggatt (Canada) 68 70, Woody Austin 74 64, Stewart Cink 70 68, Tom Byrum 69 69
139 Brett Quigley 65 74, Darren Clarke (Britain) 70 69, Tim Petrovic 69 70, Alex Cejka (Germany) 73 66, Kirk Triplett 71 68, Cliff Kresge 69 70, David Toms 72 67, Darron Stiles 71 68, Ernie Els (South Africa) 69 70
140 Angel Cabrera (Argentina) 72 68, Billy Mayfair 69 71, Mark Calcavecchia 68 72, Jonathan Kaye 70 70, Hidemichi Tanaka (Japan) 69 71, Mike Weir (Canada) 73 67, Mark O’Meara 72 68, Chad Campbell 70 70, Ryan Dillon 72 68, Phil Mickelson 70 70, Bernhard Langer (Germany) 70 70, Dicky Pride 71 69, Lee Janzen 72 68
141 Peter Lonard (Australia) 72 69, Justin Rose (Britain) 70 71, Trip Kuehne-A 74 67, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) 69 72, Loren Roberts 69 72, Jay Williamson 72 69
142 Olin Browne 72 70, Ricky Barnes-A 71 71, Steve Lowery 70 72, Len Mattiace 69 73, John Maginnes 72 70, Fred Couples 70 72, Chris Anderson 72 70, Kevin Sutherland 71 71
143 Sergio Garcia (Spain) 69 74, Chris DiMarco 72 71, J.P. Hayes 70 73, Marco Dawson 72 71, Niclas Fasth (Sweden) 75 68, Charles Howell III 70 73, John Rollins 73 70, Retief Goosen (South Africa) 71 72, Fred Funk 70 73, Kenny Perry 72 71, Brian Henninger 76 67, Scott Verplank 76 67, Colin Montgomerie (Britain) 69 74, Brian Davis (Britain) 71 72, Jay Don Blake 66 77.—Reuters
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