Saturday's News and Notes

Friday was not the first time Tiger Woods flirted with missing the cut in a major as a professional. What will Phil Mickelson do next? A strong international showing. And how the 18th hole played.

Bob Denney, PGA of America

A PGA CLUB PROFESSIONAL FOURSOME MAKES THE WEEKEND

Reigning PGA Club Professional Champion Mike Small of Savoy, Ill., posted a 2-under-par 68 to lead four PGA Club Professionals making the 36-hole cut in the 87th PGA Championship. The quartet is the most PGA Club Professionals to make the cut since four accomplished the feat in 1994 at Southern Hills Country Club in St. Louis, Mo.

Small, the men's golf coach at the University of Illinois in Champaign, became the first reigning PGA Club Professional Champion to make the cut since the late LARRY GILBERT of Lexington, Ky., who finished 73rd in 1982.

Other PGA Club Professionals making the cut were: DARRELL KESTNER of Glen Cove, N.Y., the 1996 PGA Club Professional Champion and PGA Head Professional at Deepdale Golf Club in Manhasset, N.Y.; STEVE SCHNEITER of Sandy, Utah, a PGA Assistant Professional at Schneiter's Pebblebrook Golf Links in Sandy, Utah; and RON PHILO JR. of Amelia Island, Fla., who is a PGA Teaching Professional during the summer months at The Kittansett Club in Marion, Mass.

TIGER WOODS' CLOSE CALLS IN MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

1998 U.S. Open
Rounds of 74-72--146 were one shot inside the cut line, where all players within 10 shots of the leader (Lee Janzen, 137) make the cut. Finished T-18 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco.


2000 Masters Tournament
En route to first-round 75, made double-bogey on 10 and triple-bogey on 12. Made the cut by one at 147; finished fifth with rounds of 68-69 on the weekend.


2001 PGA Championship
Rebounded from first-round 73 at Atlanta Athletic Club to make it to the weekend by one stroke. In the second round, Woods sank a 40-footer from just off the 15th green and followed with a 30-foot birdie putt on 16 on the way to a 3-under-par 67. "Luck hopped on my side," he said. "I have always believed that you've got to give it everything you have. I didn't hit the ball that great, but I hung in there. Sooner or later, I knew I was going to turn things around."

2003 Masters Tournament
Playing the ninth hole, his final hole of the second round, had to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker for a par to finish right on the cut number at 5-over-par, 76-73--149. Woods rolled in a three-footer to secure the par on the final hole. "That putt was either going in or it was going off the green," Woods said.

2005 PGA Championship
Playing the 18th hole in his 36th major championship, and on his final hole of the second round, Woods had to make a birdie. He hit a 356-yard drive, reached the green with a 198-yard approach shot and two-putted from 15 feet. He finished on the cut line at 4-over-par 144.

A LOOK AT THE CUT

The 36-hole cut was 4-over-par 144 with 79 players playing on the weekend. This marks the 10th consecutive year that the cut has been over-par at the PGA Championship. In 1995 at Rivera Country Club the 36-hole cut was even par. It is the 15th time in 34 stroke-play events in 2005 that the cut has been above par, including all four of the major championships. The over-par cuts in 2005:

1. 2-over-par, Sony Open in Hawaii
2. 3-over-par, FBR Open
3. 4-over-par, Ford Championship at Doral
4. 2-over-par, BellSouth Classic
5. 4-over-par, Masters Tournament
6. 5-over-par, MCI Heritage
7. 1-over par, Zurich Classic of New Orleans
8. 4-over-par, Wachovia Championship
9. 1-over-par, Bank of America Colonial
10. 2-over-par, FedEx St. Jude Classic
11. 2-over-par, the Memorial Tournament
12. 8-over-par, U.S. Open Championship
13. 3-over-par, Barclays Classic
14. 1-over-par, British Open Championship
15. 4-over-par, PGA Championship

Nineteen players made the cut in each of the first three majors of the 2005 season. Here is how they have done this week:

Phil Mickelson 67-65--132 -8 1st
Vijay Singh
70-67--137
-3
T6
Retief Goosen
68-70--138
-2
T11
Mark Hensby
69-70--139
-1
T15
Kenny Perry
69-70--139
-1
T15
Bernhard Langer
68-72--140
E
T23
Steve Flesch
70-71-141
+1
T30
K.J. Choi
71-70--141
+1
T30
Luke Donald
69-73--142
+2
T36
Adam Scott
74-69--143
+3
T49
Ian Poulter
69-74-143
+3
T49
Fred Couples
72-72-144
+4
T62
Tiger Woods
75-69-144
+4
T62
Tim Clark
71-73--144
+4
T62
Nick O'Hern
76-73--149
+9
MC
Tim Herron
78-73-151
+11
MC
Justin Leonard
69-76-145
+5
MC
Thomas Levet
79-68-147
+7
MC
Ernie Els.
DNP


WHAT WILL PHIL DO NEXT?

Phil Mickelson, who had a three-stroke lead heading into the weekend at the 87th PGA Championship, has now held or shared the second-round lead at a major championship four times in his career. He has never won when leading a major at the halfway mark. In fact, he had a three-stroke lead at the 1996 PGA Championship and finished T8. Below is a closer look at his 36-hole leads in majors:
Tournament,
36-hole lead,

Finish
1996 PGA Championship
Held a three-stroke lead (Valhalla GC)

T8
1999 U.S. Open
Shared with David Duval/Payne Stewart

2nd
2004 U.S. Open
Shared with Shigeki Maruyama

2nd
2005 PGA Championship
Held three-stroke lead

TBD

IS A SECOND MAJOR WITHIN LOVE DISTANCE?

Out of his 71 career major championship starts, Davis Love III (68-68) has opened up with back-to-back rounds in the 60s three times, including this week. He fired 68-69 at the 2000 PGA Championship and finished T9. In 1995, he opened with a pair of 69s at the Masters and went on to finish second behind Ben Crenshaw. When Love won the 1997 PGA Championship, he was in second place through 36 holes, one stroke back of Lee Janzen. Love has missed the cut in his last two starts at the PGA Championship.

SEVEN INTERNATIONALS IN THE TOP 10

There are seven international players in the top 10, including 2004 champion Vijay Singh. Three of the seven players are European-born: Jesper Parnevik, Lee Westwood and Greg Owen. The last European-born PGA Championship winner hoisted the Wanamaker Trophy in 1930. Scottish born Tommy Armour defeated Gene Sarazen, 1-up, at Flushing Meadows Country Club in Flushing, NY. Previous European-born champions are James Barnes (1916, 1919) of Lelant, Corwell, England, and Jock Hutchison (1920) of St. Andrews, Scotland. The following are the major championships and the total of respective European-born champions:


British Open

47
U.S. Open

17
Masters

7
PGA Championship
3

18 WAS ACCOMMODATING

The No. 18 hole, measuring 554 yards, was the only hole that averaged below-par on Friday, yielding a 4.429.