Tomasulo leads at 5-under-par, one stroke ahead of Barcelo and Todd
COLUMBUS, OH – The Scarlet Course at the Ohio State University Golf Club put up a good defense today as the greens firmed up, the wind picked up, and the scores went up at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational.Peter Tomasulo (67), leads at 5-under-par, one stroke ahead of Rich Barcelo (70) and Brendon Todd (69), who finished late in the day, at 4-under.
Ten players are tied for fourth at 3-under-par, 139, including overnight co-leader Bill Lunde (72). Kelly Grunewald (73), Dave Schultz (75), and Bryce Molder (75), all first round co-leaders, slipped out of the top ten.
Tomasulo, from Long Beach, CA, hit all 18 greens in regulation, bogeyed the first hole with a three-putt from 70 feet, then was flawless with birdies at holes 2, 7, 11, 12, and 15. A stellar six-iron to five feet at the last left him with a chance to get to 6-under but he narrowly missed his birdie putt. “That was probably my best shot of the day actually,” said Tomasulo, who won the 2005 Alberta Classic on a sponsor exemption in his first year out of college. “Five-under is a good spot to be going into the weekend. Whether it’s leading or not, I don’t know, but I’m happy to be there and wish I had gotten to six on the last hole but feel like I’m in a pretty good spot.”
After two frustrating years Tomasulo likes the way his game is coming around. In the last two months he has three top-5 finishes and is 12th on the money list. A top finish here will move him well into The25 and earn a spot on the PGA TOUR. “I’m learning a lot out here. It’s a frustrating game, and when things go sour, it’s easy to get frustrated and down on yourself. This year, I’ve been doing a better job of staying patient, staying in my routine and not getting too down on myself.”
Barcelo, who resides in Tucson, AZ, played 26 events on the PGA TOUR last year, made 13 cuts, and finished 170th on the money list. The 33-year-old is feeling better about his game after taking a month off at the end of last year. “I worked my tail off last year and then missed second stage of the Q School by one shot. I was fried, so I put the clubs away and spent time with my 3-year-old daughter. I’ve been knocking on the door this last month with a couple of good finishes,” said Barcelo, referring to his T9 at the Knoxville Open and T14 at the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic.
Former Georgia All-American, Todd, celebrated his 23rd birthday three days ago and is now celebrating breaking a string of four missed cuts. “The difference this week compared to the last month is I’ve chipped and putted really well. That’s really it. My stats show I’ve hit the ball great all year.” Todd made his lone Nationwide Tour start at this event last year on a sponsor exemption and thinks that was a big advantage. “It really helped me today, having played here last year. The only other course I’ve seen was Athens and I led into the final round there.” (Todd shot 80 and finished tied for 25th at the Athens Regional Foundation Classic in April).
Phil Tataurangi, the next to last alternate who got into the event Wednesday afternoon, followed his opening 68 with an even-par 71, including a closing nine of 3-under, and is one of 10 players tied for fourth. The New Zealander was impressed with the Scarlet Course. “We don’t often get the combination of the fairways running out and the greens playing firm. If the course stays like this then the scores won’t be low,” said Tataurangi. “This is about as good as it gets on the Nationwide Tour. The golf course is well respected by the players and officials. There is corporate hospitality and good crowds. It has a real PGA TOUR feel about it.”
Jarrod Lyle (71) and Colt Knost (69), both two-time winners this season, finished at 3-over-par, making the cut on the number to advance to the weekend.
Second Round News & Notes: The cut was 3-over-par with 73 professionals and 4 amateurs advancing to the weekend…The scoring average for the second round was 72.917…The most difficult hole was the par-4, 14th hole with a scoring average of 4.535 while the easiest hole was the par-5, 12th which averaged 4.667 ...Brad Iles (T4) and Josh Broadaway (T14) shared the low round of the day, 5-under 66…Zach Doran, a 26-year-old former All-American from Ohio State, playing on a sponsor exemption in his first Nationwide Tour event, shot 71-70 to advance to the weekend…Michael Boyd made an eagle at the 378 yard par-4, 16th hole, one of only 6 eagles all day…Daniel Summerhays, the 2007 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational champion, missed his sixth consecutive cut…Peter Tomasulo’s 5-under-par is the highest leading 36-hole score, relative to par, on the Nationwide Tour this season.
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