UNLV product Ryan Moore lurking on Shriners Open leaderboard
Ryan Moore said he still feels jet lag after returning to Las Vegas on Monday from Shanghai, where he played in the World Golf Championships. Yet he’s lurking on the leaderboard and could be a factor this weekend.
Moore, a former UNLV All-American, shot 5-under-par 66 Friday at TPC Summerlin in the second round of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and is tied with 10 others for 12th place at 8 under 134. His putter is starting to heat up, and his wedge play is getting sharper with each hole. That makes the 2012 champion a threat to repeat.
“I felt similar to the way I did (Thursday),” said Moore, who trails leader Rod Pampling by six shots. “What I did was keep the momentum from the backside of my first round going into (Friday).”
Moore was 2 over at the turn Thursday but made birdie on five of his final six holes, including four in a row, which set the stage for Friday, when he made the turn at 4 under. His only blemish was a bogey at the par-4 No. 3, the second day in a row he took bogey for the hole.
“I’m still not where I want to be,” said Moore, who is playing his last event of the year. “But I’ve shot some low rounds here. It’s all about wedges and putting and giving myself some opportunities.”
FRIDAY’S BEST ROUND
Chez Reavie knew he had to do something spectacular if he wanted to keep playing this weekend after he shot 5-over 76 Thursday. He responded with Friday’s best round, a 10-under 61.
Reavie, 34, played a bogey-free round and had eight birdies along with an eagle at the par-5 16th.
“I didn’t hit it that bad (Thursday); I just made some short-game mistakes,” Reavie said.
He is tied for 36th place and made the cut.
HE’S AN ACE
Greg Chalmers scored a hole-in-one Friday at the 190-yard, par-3 No. 5, using a 7-iron to record the first ace of the tournament. But Chalmers didn’t make the cut, shooting 71-71—142.
The last time No. 5 yielded a hole-in-one was 2003 by Dan Forsman.
NOTABLE CUTS
The cut was projected to come at 3 under, and among the notables who did not survive were former champions Kevin Na and Ben Martin, along with former UNLV players Charley Hoffman, Andres Gonzales and Kurt Kitayama.
Also, Ben Crane withdrew before the second round after injuring his back Thursday, when he shot 2-over 73.
Because 19 players were still on the course when darkness fell at 5:45 p.m., the pairings for Saturday won’t be revealed until the second round is completed. Second-round play is scheduled to resume at 7:30 a.m.
Contact Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow @stevecarprj on Twitter.
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