Sheehan leads Johnson by one at halfway point in Panama  Nationwide Tour Media Official PANAMA CITY, Panama -- Patrick Sheehan used a 6-under-par 64 on Friday to surge to the lead at the halfway mark of the $550,000 Movistar Panama Championship, the season-opening event on the Nationwide Tour.  Solid ball-striking and two long birdie putts helped Patrick Sheehan find the lead on Friday. (WireImage)
The 37-year-old native of Providence, R.I., moved to 7-under-par 133 and a one-shot advantage over Andrew Johnson (64), while Adam Riddering (65) and Hunter Haas (68) were two strokes back. "Making three birdies on the first four holes set the tone for the rest of the day," said Sheehan, who finished No. 165 on the PGA TOUR money list a year ago. "I drove it well and putted extremely well today." Sheehan, who posted his lone Nationwide Tour victory at the 2002 Price Cutter Charity Championship, drained 25- and 30-foot birdie putts on Nos. 3 and 11, respectively, to highlight his scorecard -- which included seven birdies and his only bogey of the day at the par-4 ninth hole. "I played with Carlos Franco and David Ogrin and they couldn't make anything today, but yet I was making everything," said Sheehan. "I didn't have a good putting year on TOUR last year and typically I've been a pretty good putter ... so it was nice to see them go in today." While the putter was the catalyst, solid ball-striking by Sheehan didn't hurt his chances, either. "This tournament is not a putting contest like some we play," said Sheehan. "You have to do everything well on this golf course. You can't play out of the rough here. You've got to hit the fairway and I did that today." Johnson, who began his round on the back nine, kept Sheehan in his sights thanks to a solid 6-under 64 of his own. The round was highlighted by a tournament-record 7-under 28 on the back nine, including six consecutive birdies on Nos. 12-17. "When the putt on No. 17 went in, I just started laughing," said Johnson, speaking of the 50-foot putt he dropped on the 158-yard hole. "That is when I knew it was my day." After making the turn, Johnson added a birdie on his 10th hole, with a bad drive on the par-4 seventh hole leading to a double bogey and his only mistake of the day. "It would be nice to not make doubles but I've had one each day," said Johnson, winner of the 2005 Legend Financial Group Classic. "But my game feels really good. It is nice to playing well this early in the season. I feel like I'm getting back to form." Second Round News & Notes: On a day when Ricky Barnes (8-over 148) saw his consecutive cuts made streak snapped at 23, Ted Potter, Jr. (3-under 137) recorded the first cut of his career in his 25th start. Potter missed the cut in all 24 starts during his only season on Tour in 2004. Potter is coming off of a season in which he led the Hooters Tour money list, thanks in large part to two victories ... The cut came at 3-over-par 143 with 63 players advancing to the weekend ... Several PGA TOUR veterans struggled this week, including Ian Leggatt (+6), Carlos Franco (+6) and Skip Kendall (+12) ... The shot of the day was turned in by David Hearn with a 9-iron from 161 yards on No. 17. It was the second ace of the week on that hole, and the fifth overall during the tournament's four-year history ... The scoring average for the second round was 71.795, with the par-4 11th hole ranking the toughest at 4.417. The par-5 fourth hole was the easiest at 4.712 ... 2005 Movistar Panama Championship winner Vance Veazey (2-over 142) made the cut, while 2004 champion Jimmy Walker (12-over 152) did not ... The second-round leader at the Movistar Panama Championship has gone on to win the tournament twice in the first three years of the event, including Jimmy Walker in 2004 and Tripp Isenhour in 2006. Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
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