Choi leads after tying course record
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. – K.J. Choi took a two-stroke lead after the second round of the AT&T National at Aronimink Golf Club outside of Philadelphia. A course record-tying 6 under 64 got him to 7 under 133, two clear of Chris Riley, Charlie Wi, Bo Van Pelt and Justin Leonard.On a day when his iron play was exceptional and he had the putter heating up, Choi equaled the course mark set by Justin Rose, a winner here a year ago.
“Today was a very hard hitting tee shot and the second shot, but I'm starting very slow and 11th hole missing right deep in the rough and hit a very hard only 60 yards, and a bogey,” said Choi. “Starting turn on the front nine, No. 4, had a birdie and a bunch of irons and make it and a 20-footer and a 15-footer. Anyway, score 6-under par is a course record, but first time. This course is very difficult, and the iron shots are very hard on the greens and very tough over the greens to make par.
“Today is more concentration iron play and then good read, better than yesterday, and that's why the good scoring.”
Choi won The Players Championship in May and has been wearing himself out ever since. On Friday, he finally started to feel well-rested again and that translated into a great score.
“(I) go to Korea and come back and Byron Nelson and U.S. Open,” he added. “It's a big schedule. The conditions are tighter than yesterday. Today is more a little better than yesterday. It's more focus on the golf course.
“So very happy today at 6-under par, and a total of 7 is very good. Past champion in 2007, I have good memory, and the Tiger Foundation tournament and everything. So far very good field. I've tried my best for two days.”
Bryce Molder is among a group of players three back at minus-4, and he is coming off a tie for sixth last week, matching his best finish of the year. He did what he felt he needed to do at this course, make some long putts.
“I hit a lot of greens,” he said. “I probably made three or four putts over 20 feet, which you're going to have a lot of those putts. That's what you've got to do out here because you're not going to get it close a lot.”
And then there was that 54-foot bomb he made at the seventh after landing in a divot off the tee..
“Well, it's one of those if I get it four feet past the hole it might go off the edge of the world,” Molder said. “From what I saw it had some speed, and I thought, if the hole gets in the way. But I knew it was pretty good, and then from six, eight, ten feet out it looked pretty good.
“It's one of those where I drove it right in the middle of a divot on that shot, and I was scared to tug it left, so I left it out to the right, and whatever, that's the way the world works.”
The best quote of the day belonged to first-round co-leader Adam Scott, who dropped back with a one over 71.
Scott has Tiger Woods’ caddie, Steve Williams on the bag and was asked, “How much is Stevie helping you out there? Talk about that partnership.”
And he replied, “Yeah, he's kind of good. The guy might have a future in this game.”
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