ASSOCIATED PRESSSUNRIVER, Ore. — With his back throbbing and his ribs aching, Tim Simpson managed to stay atop the leaderboard at the JELD-WEN Tradition Friday.
For a while, he was close to dropping out of the event.
“On No. 15, I turned to Fuzzy Zoeller and told him I felt like I was one swing away from going down on my knees,” Simpson said. “And Fuzzy said, ‘I’ve been there, bud. Just hang in.’”
Simpson did, carding a 5-under 67 for a share of the lead with two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer in the fourth of the five Champions Tour majors.
Langer, who shot a 66, and Simpson had 10-under 134 totals at the Crosswater Club. Fred Funk (66), Jay Haas (68) and Mike Goodes (68) were a stroke back, and Tom Watson (64) followed at 8 under. Defending champion Eduardo Romero, the U.S. Senior Open winner, was 5 under after a 65.
Simpson, slowed by Lyme disease in the early 1990s, wrenched his back on the practice range during the U.S. Senior Open and had to withdraw from that tournament.
Playing in the 100 degree heat Friday, he began to experience pain that got progressively worse as he neared the turn. After bogeys on Nos. 9 and 11, Simpson managed to make an 8-foot birdie putt on 12, then called for tour trainer Doug Miller to work on his back.
“My back sounded like Rice Krispies, so I guess I needed it,” he said.
The adjustment offered temporarily relief to Simpson, who has two second-place finishes this year. But the 52-year-old wasn’t sure whether he’ll be able to finish the tournament.
“I feel lucky that I’ve been able to play two rounds, let along two great rounds,” he said.
Langer, a two-time winner this year and the Champions Tour’s money leader, was 12 under after birdieing eight of the first 15 holes. But the German star dropped two strokes with bogeys at 16 and 18.
After finishing the front nine in 33, Langer put his extra-long putter to work, rolling in birdies on 10, 11, 12 and 13. As his 40-footer curled in at 11, he backpedaled across the green, pumping his fist.
With particularly wide fairways and forgiving greens, Crosswater continued to yield low scores. Watson’s 64 was the lowest score in the tournament since it moved to the course last year.
“The greens were soft,” Watson said. “Last year they were a lot firmer and that’s why the scores are going low. I took a lot from the golf course today.”<
Divots: Funk plans to play the PGA Tour full-time next year. ... Romero and Gil Morgan both eagled the 582-yard second hole. Morgan was 3 under after a 71. .. Corvallis native Bob Gilder holed out from the fairway for eagle on the 413-yard, par-4 fourth. He was 5 under after a 68.
Scores with relation to par from the second round of the JELD-WEN Tradition, played Aug. 15
at the par-72, 7,683-yard Crosswater Golf Club at Sunriver Resort in
Bend, Ore.:
| 1. Tim Simpson |
67-67--134 |
|
|
-10 |
| 1. Bernhard Langer |
68-66--134 |
|
|
-10 |
| 3. Jay Haas |
67-68--135 |
|
|
-9 |
| 3. Fred Funk |
69-66--135 |
|
|
-9 |
| 3. Mike Goodes |
68-67--135 |
|
|
-9 |
| 6. Tom Watson |
72-64--136 |
|
|
-8 |
| 7. Hale Irwin |
68-69--137 |
|
|
-7 |
| 7. Gene Jones |
67-70--137 |
|
|
-7 |
| 7. Mark Wiebe |
67-70--137 |
|
|
-7 |
| 10. David Eger |
67-71--138 |
|
|
-6 |
| 10. Bobby Wadkins |
71-67--138 |
|
|
-6 |
| 10. Scott Hoch |
72-66--138 |
|
|
-6 |
| 13. Walter Hall |
69-70--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Scott Simpson |
73-66--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Tom Jenkins |
71-68--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Loren Roberts |
70-69--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Massy Kuramoto |
68-71--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Mark McNulty |
67-72--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Bob Gilder |
71-68--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 13. Eduardo Romero |
74-65--139 |
|
|
-5 |
| 21. Fuzzy Zoeller |
74-66--140 |
|
|
-4 |
| 21. Jim Thorpe |
69-71--140 |
|
|
-4 |
| 21. Joe Ozaki |
68-72--140 |
|
|
-4 |
| 21. D.A. Weibring |
68-72--140 |
|
|
-4 |
| 25. Gary Hallberg |
74-67--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Lonnie Nielsen |
70-71--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Tom Purtzer |
71-70--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Bruce Vaughan |
71-70--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Gil Morgan |
70-71--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. John Cook |
69-72--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Don Pooley |
70-71--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Allen Doyle |
69-72--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. R.W. Eaks |
68-73--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 25. Craig Stadler |
67-74--141 |
|
|
-3 |
| 35. Morris Hatalsky |
71-71--142 |
|
|
-2 |
| 35. Dana Quigley |
72-70--142 |
|
|
-2 |
| 35. Tom Kite |
72-70--142 |
|
|
-2 |
| 38. Vicente Fernandez |
74-69--143 |
|
|
-1 |
| 38. Bruce Fleisher |
71-72--143 |
|
|
-1 |
| 38. Dan Forsman |
74-69--143 |
|
|
-1 |
| 41. Mike Reid |
74-70--144 |
|
|
E |
| 41. Brad Bryant |
71-73--144 |
|
|
E |
| 41. Des Smyth |
71-73--144 |
|
|
E |
| 41. Andy Bean |
72-72--144 |
|
|
E |
| 45. Graham Marsh |
72-73--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. John Harris |
73-72--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Ron Streck |
73-72--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Keith Fergus |
73-72--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Jim Colbert |
72-73--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Denis Watson |
69-76--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Jeff Sluman |
72-73--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 45. Bruce Lietzke |
72-73--145 |
|
+ |
1 |
| 53. Ed Dougherty |
75-71--146 |
|
+ |
2 |
| 53. Gary Koch |
75-71--146 |
|
+ |
2 |
| 53. Joey Sindelar |
70-76--146 |
|
+ |
2 |
| 53. Mark O'Meara |
71-75--146 |
|
+ |
2 |
| 57. David Edwards |
72-75--147 |
|
+ |
3 |
| 57. Chip Beck |
69-78--147 |
|
+ |
3 |
| 57. Sandy Lyle |
73-74--147 |
|
+ |
3 |
| 60. Tom McKnight |
77-71--148 |
|
+ |
4 |
| 61. Mike McCullough |
74-75--149 |
|
+ |
5 |
| 62. Wayne Grady |
75-75--150 |
|
+ |
6 |
| 62. Pete Oakley |
78-72--150 |
|
+ |
6 |
| 64. Dave Eichelberger |
77-75--152 |
|
+ |
8 |
| 64. Wayne Levi |
76-76--152 |
|
+ |
8 |
| 64. Leonard Thompson |
76-76--152 |
|
+ |
8 |
| 64. Ben Crenshaw |
74-78--152 |
|
+ |
8 |
| DNS. Peter Jacobsen |
|
|
|
|
Posted: 8/15/2008
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