Maggert Leading, but Only After 27 Holes

[March 08, 2008]  PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) -- The wind was strong enough to suspend scoreboard operations and blow sand out of the bunkers, and Jeff Maggert was stringing together birdies, adding to the rumor that this Texas resident loves a good gust.

Not to ruin a good story, but Maggert wanted to set a few things straight at the PODS Championship.

"Everyone says because I'm from Texas, I'm a great wind player," he said Friday after building a three-shot lead at the turn before the second round was suspended by storms. "But I grew up in Houston. And to be honest with you, we didn't get a lot of wind on the side of town that I lived in. So I wouldn't say I'm an expert in the wind."

But he did spend two years at Oklahoma State, which has to count for something.

"I felt like I was getting blown off the planet up there," said Maggert, who finished his education at Texas A&M.

More than anything, his score of 8-under par through 27 holes at Innisbrook was a product of good play, some good putting and a few good breaks in the draw.

Maggert was among the fortunate to play the first round Thursday morning in pristine conditions, a combination of sunshine, soft greens and only a trace of wind. He opened with a 5-under 66 on a day the Copperhead course rarely played so easy.

Then, just his luck that when the gusts hit 25 mph and even the tight clothing of Jesper Parnevik was flapping, Maggert began his second round on the front nine, with the wind at his back the first two holes.

The pea shooter suddenly turned into a cannon, for Maggert blasted tee shots over 300 yards and opened with two birdies, then added a hard-earned birdie on the par-3 fourth with a 4-iron into some 20 feet.

"It was a good start," he said, a fact that could not be denied by anyone. "On a day like today, you just try to hit good golf shots, hit solid golf shots, don't try to get ahead of yourself, put the ball on the fairway, put the ball on the greens, and just make the best of it."

Maggert wasn't out of cliches quite yet.

"I've only played 27 holes," he said. "I've got a lot of the tournament in front of me."

And he doesn't really have the lead.

Until the second round is completed - 71 players were to return at 7:30 a.m to a soggy course - the clubhouse leaders were at 3-under 139, and they were an eclectic bunch that featured the defending champion (Mark Calcavecchia) and a guy who hasn't won in 10 years (Lee Janzen), rounded out by Stuart Appleby and Paul Casey.

One thing they had in common was they were finished, and in this tournament, that's good.

"I'm very, very happy to get in the clubhouse and watch these guys go through what I went through today," Casey said.

Among those still to finish the second round were Kenny Perry and D.J. Trahan at 5 under, followed by Sean O'Hair and first-round leader Bart Bryant at 4 under.

Bryant wound up sharing the 18-hole lead with Janzen, who finished three holes of the first round Friday morning with two birdies, including a 3-iron off the pine straw to 20 feet on the tough 16th.

The next 18 holes were more of a struggle. The layers of clouds moved quickly over the course behind 20 mph wind, the kind that exposes the slightest mistakes. Janzen is playing better, but the wind showed him he's not quite there yet. He made five bogeys, but cobbled enough birdies together to stay in the hunt.

"It's an extreme challenge to play in the wind," he said. "As the round went on, I didn't quite have my game. I was hoping to run out of holes quick."

Calcavecchia also had a long day with mixed results, starting with a chip-in for eagle on the 14th hole of his first round in the morning, hanging on later in the morning to complete his second round. The wind got so strong that he barely cleared the large pond in front of the tee on the par-5 fifth, and he made fun of short-hitting Corey Pavin for waiting on a lull to get over the water.

"That's the only way he could clear the water," Calcavecchia said.

A year ago, Calcavecchia narrowly made the cut, then shot 62 in the third round that carried him to victory.

"There won't be any 62s today or tomorrow," he said.

Not even the temperature?

"Maybe a 52 with the wind chill," he said.

Others who finished early were already on their way home, or to the next stop. Ernie Els, coming off a victory last week in the Honda Classic, birdied his last two holes to salvage a 73, leaving him at 4-over 146 and likely to miss the cut.

"It's very tough, demanding golf," he said. "I didn't quite have it."

Davis Love III was 3 under for his first three holes until he started giving shots back, shooting 72 to miss the cut for the second time since returning from ankle surgery.

Six players failed to break 80, including David Toms (81), which might end up costing him a spot in the World Golf Championship in two weeks at Doral.

John Daly also shot 80, the first time he has done that all year.

[Associated Press; By DOUG FERGUSON]

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