Bryce Molder birdied four of the last seven holes for a 6-under 66
and a one-stroke lead Friday in the Houston Open, the final event
before the Masters next week at Augusta National.
Molder had a 9-under 135 total on Redstone's Tournament
Course.
First-round co-leader Cameron Percy (69) and fellow PGA Tour
rookie Alex Prugh (66) were tied for second, and Lee Westwood (68),
Anthony Kim (69), Joe Ogilvie (67) and Kevin Stadler (70) were
7-under after another windy day.
Ernie Els, Fred Couples and Phil Mickelson made the cut but
were far off the pace after failing to break par in the second
round. Els (74) and Couples (73) were even-par, and Mickelson (76)
was 1-over.
Els is trying to win his third straight tournament, and
Couples, 50, is warming up for the Masters after three consecutive
wins on the seniors Champions Tour.
Several big names came to Houston to warm up for the Masters.
Organizers have tried to simulate course conditions that players
will see at Augusta National -- fast greens, light rough,
shaved-down runoff areas and fairways mowed toward the tees.
Lucas Glover's second-round 68 included the first hole-in-one
in the course's five-year tour history. Glover used a 6-iron on the
199-yard 16th hole for the first ace in the Houston Open since
2005. He was 3-under.
Molder, winless in 88 career starts, made short birdie putts
on 12 and 13, then chipped in on the par-5 15th. He rolled in a
33-foot putt on 17 to take the outright lead.
The 31-year-old has never played in the Masters, but says
he's more focused on trying to earn his first victory than
qualifying for Augusta.
``Once you're out there and over the ball, you're not really
thinking, 'Well, maybe this is what could or could not get me in
next week,'' Molder said. ``If you ask me that Sunday afternoon and
I've got a two-shot lead walking down the last hole, maybe so. But
I haven't won on the PGA Tour. When I win out here, first and
foremost, it's going to be exciting.''
Percy and Prugh are also seeking their first wins.
The most notable distinction of Percy's career so far is he's
the last man to play a competitive round with Tiger Woods. He was
paired with Woods on the final day of the Australian Masters on
Nov. 15.
``All my friends think they're going to win a trivia contest
in about 10 years or something,'' Percy said.
Percy is fortunate to even be playing in Houston. He was the
first alternate on Monday and entered in a qualifier at nearby
Cypresswood, thinking he was going to have to play his way in. He
was standing on the first tee on when got a phone message saying
that he was in the field.
Prugh withstood a double bogey on No. 3 to shoot a 66, the
lowest score of the tournament, later matched by Molder. Prugh
mentally regrouped on the long walk between the third and fourth
holes, then sank a 16-foot birdie putt to get going.
``I rolled that one in, and right there, that put my round
around a little bit,'' Prugh said.
Mickelson fell out of contention when he took a bizarre
triple bogey on No. 10. He hooked his tee shot to the base of a
bush, then went to a right-handed stance to punch it out.
A second ball popped out when Mickelson swung, and the ball
he was playing ricocheted off his leg, a two-stroke penalty. He
pitched his next shot to 18 feet and two-putted for a 7.
Couples was 2-under before driving into the fairway bunker on
No. 18 and taking a bogey. Els bogeyed three of his last six holes.
