PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Alex Cejka served up more proof Friday that The Players Championship is full of surprises, not only on the devilish TPC Sawgrass but on the leaderboard.
A week after he needed an epidural to restore feeling in his right arm, Cejka ran off six birdies in 11 holes to start his second round and wound up with a 5-under-par 67 to build a two-shot lead over Ian Poulter (68—135) going into a weekend full of possibilities.
Neither of the top two players have won on the PGA Tour, and only one player in the 35-year history of this event has made it his first PGA Tour victory.
An eclectic group four shots behind include Masters champion Angel Cabrera, former PGA champion David Toms and alternate Jason Dufner, who earned a tee time through someone else’s misfortune.
Tiger Woods did his best to get back into the hunt with a delicate pitch out of the mounds for a short birdie, and he made an important save on the par-5 16th by trying to land short of the green with his third shot, even though he was only 45 yards away.
“I got myself back in the ballgame,” Woods said after a 69, leaving him seven shots behind.
Seven shots sounds like a lot, but perhaps not at Sawgrass, where even small mistakes can lead to big numbers.
Kevin Na, who played with Cejka before no more than a few dozen people most of the round, tried to make up ground and had a 66 to finish in the group at 7-under 137, along with Cabrera (65), Dufner (70), Toms (70), Henrik Stenson (69) and John Mallinger (71).
Phil Mickelson struggled with his putting most of the round and shot 1-under 71, making birdie on the last hole to make the cut on the number (144).
“You never want to give up here, because too many things can happen on this golf course,” Mickelson said.
Ochoa pulling away
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — Lorena Ochoa topped the leaderboard for the sixth consecutive round on the LPGA Tour, shooting a 6-under 65 to take a three-stroke lead in the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill.
Coming off a wire-to-wire victory two weeks ago in her native Mexico, the top-ranked Ochoa had a 13-under 129 total. She’s seeking her third victory in seven 2009 starts.
Cristie Kerr, the 2005 winner, and Song-Hee Kim matched the course record with 63s to join In-Kyung Kim (64) at 10-under 132.
Rookie Michelle Wie, eight back after an up-and- down 67, had one of the shots of the day, holing her approach for eagle on the par-4 10th, her first hole of the day. She immediately followed with a bogey, though, and had three more to minimize six birdies.
Vancsik leads Italian Open
TURIN — Daniel Vancsik took the lead at the Italian Open, shooting a 6-under 65 to lead Gareth Maybin by one stroke after the second round.
John Daly stayed in contention with a second straight 69 at the Royal Park I Roveri course that had him five strokes back. Maybin shot a 70 to follow the course-record 64 he had in the opening round.
European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie didn’t make the cut. The Scot bogeyed the last two holes, finishing at 2-over to crash out early as he did a week ago at the Spanish Open.
