ENDICOTT, N.Y. — The second day of the Dick’s Open reaffirmed the resilience of the golfers who are still in search of a PGA Tour Champions title this year.
Ireland’s Padraig Harrington, Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee, Dicky Pride and Matt Gogel (U.S.) emerged in the top four of the leaderboard for Round 2 of the tournament on Saturday, June 27.
Richard (Dicky) Pride — the 56-year-old calling Tuscaloosa, Alabama home — secured his career-best-tying finish of 9-under (par 72) in the first round of the tournament, then went on to recreate his flawless, bogie-free play in the first nine holes.
A bogey and double bogey on the 11th and 14th, respectively, put Pride at 70 and left the number one spot up for grabs, to which Dick’s Open’s No.1 contender, Harrington, happily obliged.
Harrington, who had but one bogey at the 11th as well, for a 5-under, said he “would’ve liked to get a couple more in the bag,” but shouldn’t be overly critical of himself given his level of consistency, record-breaking history, and 12-under finish.
“The problem with 12-under is there’s probably a bunch of guys who can shoot 6-, 7-, 8-under par who are going to have a chance tomorrow,” he said.
Jaidee — like Pride, Gogel, and Harrington — is in search of his first PGA Tour Champions tournament win this year, and with a bogie-free (66) first round and a 67 second round, it seems like he might just get there if he continues playing as he has.
The 56-year-old, although unable to get the proper distance and going over-par on the 11th and 14th, similar to Pride, had a flawless first nine holes, including an eagle and four birdies, which put him at -11, tying with Pride for second on the leaderboard.
Harrington, Jaidee and Pride will tee off at 1:35 p.m. on Sunday, June 28, in the final round.
Daly shrugs his shoulders after getting the best score of the day
A fan-favorite and known for his unconventionality as well as his unapologetic dismissal of societal norms, John Daly laughingly told reporters, “I don’t work on my golf game at all,” which isn’t unlike him, but made his bogey-free, 9-under performance of seven birdies and an eagle seem that much more impressive.
Daly’s last (and first) PGA Tour Champions win was in 2017, at the same venue, The Woodlands, where he debuted just a year earlier.
The 60-year-old’s record-breaking drives from his late twenties, which earned him the “Long John” nickname and a role as the golf guru and drunken mentor in Happy Gilmore 2, were nearly present on Saturday as he averaged 384 yards over 18 holes.
Round 2 Results (par 72)
1 – Padraig Harrington -12
T2 – Thongchai Jaidee, Dicky Pride -11
T4 – Matt Gogel, Scott Hend, Richard Green -10
T7 – Mathew Goggin, Paul Stankowski, J.J. Henry, Bo Van Pelt, Freddie Jacobson, Tommy Gainey -9
T13 – John Daly, Tim O’Neal, Rory Sabbatini, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Charlie Wi, George McNeill, Boo Weekley, Stephen Ames, Michael Block -8
22 – Brett Quigley -7
T23 – Alex Cejka, Tim Petrovic, Doug Barron, Jason Caron, Chris DiMarco, Greg Chalmers, Darren Clarke -6
T30 – Kenny Perry, Joe Durant -5
T32 – Y.E. Yang, Robert Karlsson, Mark Hensby, Vaughn Taylor, Ricardo Gonzalez, Steve Stricker, Bernhard Langer, Retief Goosen, Steve Allan, Brian Gay -4
T42 – Angel Cabrera, Ryan Armour, Tag Ridings, Heath Slocum -3
T47 – Craig Hocknull, Paul Goydos, Michael Wright, Colin Montgomerie, Kirk Triplett, Michael Allan -1
T53 – David Duval, John Rollins, Shane Bertsch, Notah Begay III, Chad Campbell E
T58 – David Toms, Rocco Mediate, Ken Duke, Billy Andrade, Tim Herron, Lee Janzen +1
T64 – Olin Browne, K.J. Choi, Fred Funk +2
T67 – Jay Haas, Ken Tanigawa, Rod Pampling, Jeff Maggert +3
71 – David Bransdon +4
T72 – Mark Wilson, Woody Austin, John Senden, Tom Pernice Jr. +5
T76 – Duffy Waldorf, Corey Pavin, Steve Pate +6
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Dick’s Open | Daly gets the best score of Round 2, Harrington emerges No.1
Reporting by Aniya Sumner, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin / Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Aniya Sumner, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin | USA TODAY Network
