Overjoyed with another 70 in the U.S. Senior Open, Raymond Floyd said he'd gladly take two more.
Floyd, in search of his first Senior Open championship, took a two-shot lead midway through Friday's second round of the tournament by carding his second straight 1-under-par 70 for a 36-hole score of 140."In a minute," Floyd quickly replied when asked if he would be satisfied to repeat on Saturday and Sunday what he accomplished Thursday and Friday.
"You bet I'm pleased. I hit a lot of fairways today, I hit a lot of solid shots. I might have even played better today than I played yesterday."
Floyd's first-round performance over the 6,906-yard, par-71 Riviera course was the only under-par score of the day, and it gave him a one-shot lead over five golfers.
Two of those five - Bruce Summerhays and club pro Roy Vucinich - each shot even-par 71 for the second straight day on Friday, giving them 142 totals.
Summerhays would have fared even better had he not bogeyed the final three holes, but he wasn't dismayed. "Even-par after two rounds on this golf course is great. I'm not going to dwell on it."
The scores midway through the second round were a bit lower than Thursday, when the average for the 155 competitors was 78.903 - the highest first-round average in the history of seniors golf.
The field was to be cut to the low 60 and ties along with anyone within 10 shots of the lead at the conclusion of Friday's round. The 72-hole tournament continues Saturday and finishes Sunday.
Dave Stockton, who played in the same threesome with Floyd, had a second-round 70 for a 36-hole total of 143. It was only the third below-par round of the tournament, with the other two belonging to Floyd.
Gibby Gilbert shot his second consecutive 72 to put him at 144. Gil Morgan, one of the pre-tournament favorites, was next at 145 after also shooting a 72 on Friday.
CVS CHARITY CLASSIC: It isn't enough for Paul Azinger and Fuzzy Zoeller to have their names in the Pleasant Valley Country Club Hall of Honor in Sutton, Mass. They also want to take some of the course's money.
Azinger and Zoeller each shot 6-under-par 65s on Friday to improve to minus-9 after two rounds of the final CVS Charity Classic. That put them one stroke behind leader Mike Springer in pursuit of the $270,000 first prize. Springer shot a 67 for 132.
First-round co-leader Willie Wood shot a 69 Friday to head into the weekend tied with Azinger and Zoeller at 9-under 133. Lee Rinker birdied his 17th hole and eagled his 18th to complete a 67 that pull him into a tie with Nolan Henke at 134, two strokes back. Henke shot a 65 Friday.
Brad Faxon , Dave Stockton Jr. and Steve Pate were at 135, three strokes back.
Seventy-nine of the 158 starters made the cut at 1-under after two rounds on the par-71, 7,110-yard Pleasant Valley course in the final edition of a tournament that dates to 1965.
The event will be replaced next year by an LPGA tournament, in part because of its troubles in finding a desirable spot on the PGA schedule. This year, for example, many of the top names are staying away to rest after last week's British Open.
GIANT EAGLE LPGA: Rookie sensation Se Ri Pak capped a late surge with an eagle on the final hole to grab a share of the lead after Friday's opening round of the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic in How-land, Ohio.
Winner of two majors already, Pak tuned up for next week's final grand slam event, the du Maurier, by putting together five birdies and an eagle for a 7-under-par 65.
She shared the lead with defending champion Tammie Green, who is four months pregnant, along with Alicia Dibos and Becky Iver-son.
The 20-year-old bettered her acclaimed playing partners. Annika Sorenstam and Karrie Webb. In what was called a dream grouping, Sorenstam shot a 2-under 70 and Webb finished at even-par 72 at Avalon Lakes Golf Course.
Moments before Pak's eagle, Green two-putted from the front edge of the final green for a birdie that capped her 65. Last year's winner in a playoff with Laura Davies had five birdies on the front side and added two on the back.