GOLF DIGEST: USPGA TOUR: Three-time champion Tiger Woods was let down by his approach play at the Memorial tournament yesterday as fellow American Jonathan Byrd grabbed an early, one-shot lead in the second round.
Woods, bidding for his second PGA Tour victory this year, carded a two-over-par 74 in breezy conditions at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, to lie six shots off the pace.
Byrd fired a flawless 68 for a seven-under total of 137, a stroke in front of compatriot Mark Wilson (70) and Canadian left-hander Mike Weir (69).
Woods, champion here for three consecutive years from 1999, was frustrated after wasting a good display off the tee with erratic iron shots and missed putts on lightning-fast greens.
“I drove it great,” the 33-year-old told reporters after a round featuring five bogeys and three birdies. “But I hit my ball (for approach shots) on the short side and you can’t do that out here.”
The cut was projected to fall at three-over 147, so Pádraig Harrington, who had shot a three-over 75 on Thursday, was in real trouble.
The Dubliner, having started at the 10th yesterday, was three over for his first nine and six over for the tournament.
EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR: Northern Ireland's Gareth Shaw is the sole surviving Irishman in the field at the European Challenge Tour's Kärnten Golf Open presented by Markus Brier Foundation.
Shaw’s second round of five-under-par 67 took him to seven under at the halfway stage, but he still finds himself seven strokes off the lead after a stunning opening display from Spain’s Carlos Rodiles, who carded successive 65s to storm to the top of the leaderboard on 14 under par.
While Shaw will try to force his way into contention, his fellow Irish pros, six in all, are making their way home to prepare for next week’s Challenge of Ireland presented by Moyvalley.
Of those six men missing the cut, Noel Fox will surely be the most disappointed. After opening the with a fine 68 on Thursday, he stumbled to a second-round 79 to play his way out of the tournament, joining Stephen Grant (+3), Alan Murray (+3), Peter O’Keeffe (+6), Danny Sugrue (+8)and Mark Campbell (+13) on the early flight home.
LET: Thailand's Titiya Plucksataporn led by a stroke on seven-under-par 65 at the Dutch Ladies Open yesterday.
On a cool opening day in Eindhoven, the 26-year-old from Bangkok fired a career-low round, which included eight birdies, an eagle and three bogeys.
The fourth year Ladies European Tour player went one better than Italian Diana Luna, who shot a scintillating 66, with recent Swiss Open champion Marianne Skarpnord a stroke further back on 67.
First year players Christel Boeljon from the Netherlands and Krystle Caithness of Scotland lie in equal fourth with Ireland’s Hazel Kavanagh, all three shots off the pace in Eindhoven.
