The 2005 season could not have finished up much better for Jason Gore.
After being in contention on Sunday at the U.S. Open, Gore went on to win three Nationwide Tour events and the PGA Tour's 84 Lumber Classic.
However, 2006 did not begin the way he might have hoped. In seven appearances this season, he missed the cut five times, including last week's Nissan Open.
It turned out a trip to Tucson is all he needed.
After a 4-under-par 68 in the first round, the former Arizona Wildcat added a bogey-free 66 on Friday to put him at 10 under par for the tournament, two strokes behind the leader, Duffy Waldorf.
"I'm back to just playing golf," he said. "Earlier this year I was worried about where I was going to hit it instead of just swinging.
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"All year I've been on the edge of being good; you just have to be patient."
That patience paid off on Friday as Gore posted three straight birdies on holes 12 through 14.
He then added an eagle on the par-5 second hole to go to 5 under on his round.
After hitting his drive 320 yards down the right side, he hit a 5 iron out of the rough to 10 feet and made the putt.
"You have to play aggressive with the conservative targets or you'll get lapped," he said.
Gore then finished with a birdie on the par-5 eighth before getting up and down for par on No. 9.
"I've played this course before, and I feel very comfortable with it," he said.
Reaching new heights
Bubba Watson's wife, Angie, has little trouble peering over the gallery to watch her husband.
Angie Watson, 6 feet 4 inches tall, was known as Angie Ball when she played for the WNBA Charlotte Sting for a year. Angie Watson is now a WNBA agent who also spent two years playing in Europe.
"Being an ex-athlete, I understand the good days and the bad days," she said.
The two met at the University of Georgia.
Wie will rock you
Scott Gutschewski had the rare experience of being paired with Michelle Wie at last year's John Deere Classic.
Wie edged him by one shot in the opening round.
"But I beat her the second round," the Nebraska alum said Friday. "Seriously, she's going to do a lot of things in golf, not just women's golf."
Gutschewski had a second-round 66 at last year's John Deere Classic and finished tied for 46th. Wie shot 71 to miss the cut.
Chip Shots
● A wayward shot and ensuing triple-bogey at his final hole of the day sent 1998 champion David Duval huffing to the driving range.
Duval pulled his second shot at the par-4 ninth onto the roof of some greenside casitas. The ball never came down, and Duval finished at 2-under 70 on the day, missing the cut by five strokes.
● Two Monday qualifiers made the cut. Nationwide Tour pro Jason Allred shot 69-68—137, and former ASU golfer Jin Park carded a 68-69—137.
● The toughest hole at Tucson National through the first two days has been the par-4 ninth with an average of 4.140. Next is the par-3 seventh (lengthened by 45 yards this year) at 3.122 with the par-4 18th coming in third at 4.112
● Rookie John Engler Jr. made his first cut ever on the PGA Tour. He was tied for 53rd at 5 under.
● Steven Bowditch and Bob Burns withdrew before the second round. Bowditch pulled out with an injury after shooting 82.
● Geoff Ogilvy, last year's CCT champion, defeated Mike Weir in 21 holes in Friday's third round of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. He faces David Howell in today's quarterfinals.
Today's tee times
1st Tee
9:16 a.m. Gavin Coles, Matt Hansen, Justin Rose
9:25 a.m. Mike Sposa, Marco Dawson, Brett Wetterich
9:35 a.m. Charley Hoffman, Gabriel Hjertstedt, David Edwards
9:44 a.m. Mathias Gronberg, Danny Ellis, Jin Park
9:54 a.m. Bob Estes, Michael Allen, John Cook
10:03 p.m. David Branshaw, Bubba Dickerson, Nathan Green
10:13 p.m. Heath Slocum, Carlos Franco, Ian Leggatt
10:22 p.m. Cameron Beckman, Kris Cox, Chris Riley
10:32 p.m. Jason Allred, Alex Cejka, Doug Barron
10:41 p.m. Jerry Kelly, Brian Henninger, Mark Brooks
10:51 p.m. Bubba Watson, Bob Tway, Jason Gore
11:00 a.m. Duffy Waldorf, Mark Wilson, Scott Gutschewski
10th Tee
9:16 a.m. Todd Fischer, Jeff Sluman, Billy Mayfair
9:25 a.m. Paul Goydos, Brian Gay, Camilo Villegas
9:35 a.m. Steve Stricker, Ryuji Imada, Brendan Jones
9:44 a.m. John Rollins, Aaron Baddeley, Trevor Immelman
9:54 a.m. Jeff Brehaut, Tag Ridings, Eric Axley
10:03 p.m. Jeff Overton, Jonathan Kaye, Kirk Triplett
10:13 p.m. John Engler, Jr., Hunter Mahan, Don Yrene
10:22 p.m. Ted Purdy, Steve Jones, Briny Baird
10:32 p.m. Daisuke Maruyama, Vance Veazey, Ricky Barnes
10:41 p.m. Bo Van Pelt, Kevin Sutherland, David Berganio, Jr.
10:51 p.m. Jeff Gove, Bob May, Tom Byrum
11:00 a.m. Wes Short, Jr., Bill Haas, Henrik Bjornstad
