TOMMY TOLLES, a second year professional, fired an eight under par 64 in Ponte Vedra, Florida yesterday to take the halfway lead in the Players' Championship as more illustrious names fell by the wayside.
Tolles had an 11 under total of 133 to lead Justin Leonard and Mark Calcavecchia, both on 135. Jay Haas lead a quartet on eight under 136 that also included Fuzzy Zoeller, David Duval and Kenny Perry.
But Greg Norman, who won this event with a record 24 under par total in 1994, missed the halfway cut the first time in his career he has missed two cuts in a row.
"The way I finished is the way I hit the ball all week," Norman said after a 73 for 146. "Maybe it's a sign for me to get out there and work a little harder. Right now I'm really in a bit of a funk. If you're not mentally sharp, you're not going to get a score on the board. I got what I deserved."
Nick Faldo, who double bogeyed the 18th, Ian Woosnam and Costantino Rocca also missed the cut.
Tolles, whose best finish in his rookie year last year was a tie for third at the Bob Hope Classic, said he had been working on his swing for the past six months, and he thought things had come together in the past few weeks.
Scoring birdies on the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth holes, Tolles shot a four under 32 on the front nine, and he was four under coming in. He said yesterday's round was perhaps his best ever, but he said the windy conditions could have been his undoing at any time.
"I only played one other time here, that was about four years ago. Even then, the golf course seems different then from what it is now. With the wind switching directions from yesterday to today, it was like playing a whole new golf course for me.
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