Long-distance local Lile leads by one at Fort Smith Classic  PGA TOUR Staff FORT SMITH, Ark. -- Local favorite Craig Lile -- a native of Capetown, South Africa and resident of nearby Rogers, Ark. -- moved to 11-under-par 129 to jump into sole possession of first place after the second round of the 10th annual Fort Smith Classic.  Craig Lile bettered his first-round score by a shot on Friday. (Stan Badz/PGA TOUR/WireImage)
Lile bettered his first round score by one stroke, firing a 6-under 64 -- thanks to five birdies in a six-hole stretch on Nos. 2-7 -- to move one shot in front of first-round leader Scott Gutschewski (67). "I had a good day," said the former University of Arkansas Razorback, who hit eight of 13 fairways and 12 of 18 greens in regulation. "Overall I can't complain. I haven't been shooting many 64s lately. The ball rolled in the right direction and kept falling in the hole for me today." After enjoying a career-best year on the 2006 Nationwide Tour with a 27th-place finish on the money list, Lile has struggled somewhat during his rookie season on the PGA TOUR. Among his three made cuts in eight starts is a season-best tie for 34th in his first start at the Sony Open in Hawaii. "You never figure this game out," said Lile, who currently sits No. 194 in the FedExCup point standings. "You're never in control of it. You're always on the edge of the fence and you could fall off on either side. But my game feels like it is starting to come around." If his game continues to improve, it will do so at the par-70 Hardscrabble Country Club -- a course Lile has an affinity for but has achieved little success on. Despite Arkansas roots, success at the Fort Smith Classic has eluded Lile's grasp, evidenced by just three made cuts in six starts. A tie for 42nd place in 2001 is his best showing. "I loved this course from the first time I played here," said Lile. "Why I don't play well here? I don't know. It is probably more coincidence than anything. I'm just happy to be playing tomorrow because I haven't had a lot of luck here." Lile's participation in Fort Smith was due to his failure to make the field at this week's TOUR stop at the Wachovia Championship. "I'd love to be in Charlotte but this is not a bad backup plan," said the 30-year-old Lile. "I can't think of another tournament (on the Nationwide Tour) I'd rather win. I live about 45 minutes from here. It is always nice to play a tournament and sleep in your own bed." While failing to hang on to his first-round lead, Gutschewski still managed to hang close to Lile's perch at the top of the leaderboard with a four-birdie and one-bogey performance. "It was pretty much the same as yesterday except I couldn't get any putts to fall today," said Gutschewski, who ended the day with 32 putts. "I hit one bad drive on the fifth hole that led to my only bogey. But other than that I hit it good again." Colombian Camilo Benedetti (66), PGA TOUR member Michael Boyd (66) and Jon Mills (66) sit just two shots off the pace at 9-under 131. Boyd -- in particular -- is just happy to have a spot in this week's tournament. "I actually forgot to commit to this tournament so I had to Monday-qualify," said Boyd. "I shot a 64 in the qualifier and I'm just keeping that momentum going." Second-Round News & Notes: The cut came at a tournament-record and season-low 3-under 137 with 67 players advancing to the weekend. The previous low cut in Fort Smith was 1-under 139 on three occasions (1998, 2000, 2001). ... Craig Lile has held the 36-hole lead on two prior occasions on the Nationwide Tour, with both leading to runner-up finishes (2003 Omaha Classic, 2006 Athens Regional Foundation Classic). ... While Todd Demsey wasn't on hand to attempt to make his ninth cut this season on the Nationwide Tour, he was successful in making the cut at the Wachovia Championship, doing so on the number at 3-over 147. ... Players were allowed to use lift, clean and place for the second straight day. ... A putter switch by Keith Nolan prior to the start of the second round led to the day's best score with a 9-under 61, just one shy of the course record set by Jeff Freeman in 2001 and Chris Couch in 2005. It was also one shy of Brenden Pappas season-best 60 at the Chitimacha Louisiana Open. Nolan had two eagles on Friday on Nos. 6 and 12, the only player to perform the feat so far this week. ... The second-round leader has gone on to win the Fort Smith Classic four times in nine attempts, while just three of eight 36-hole leaders have won on Tour this season. ... There were five bogey-free rounds on Friday, bringing the total for the week to 11 such rounds. Players without a bogey on Friday were David Morland IV (64), Patrick Sheehan (65), Gabriel Hjertstedt (66), B.J. Staten (66) and Martin Laird (67). ... The toughest hole during the second round was the par-4 fifth hole with a 4.340 average. The par-5 sixth hole ranked the easiest at 4.295. ... The second-round scoring average was 69.372, compared to 70.284 a year ago. Copyright 2007 PGATOUR.com. All rights reserved. |
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