By Ben James Aug 15, 2009, 1:48 GMT
Hazeltine, Minnesota - Tiger Woods separated himself from the rest on the second day of the US PGA Championship at Hazeltine on Friday as he recorded a 2-under-par 70 to finish on 7-under-par, four shots clear of the field.
The world No 1 birdied three consecutive holes from the 14th, and despite a bogey at the last, stayed four shots clear of five men, including defending champion Padraig Harrington, who shot a 1-over- par 73.
'It was a tough day all around,' said four-time champion Woods, who is chasing his 15th Major victory. 'The wind was blustery and the greens were a bit bumpy.'
Tied in second at four shots back were Harrington, two-time PGA champion Vijay Singh, US Open champion Lucas Glover, Australian Brendan Jones and Englishman Ross Fisher, who equalled the best round of the day with a 68.
Another Englishman, Lee Westwood, arrived at the 17th hole on 4- under, but three-putted from four feet to drop back to 2-under, alongside his compatriot Ian Poulter, while South African Ernie Els was a shot further back on 1-under after also carding 68.
Phil Mickelson scraped into the weekend despite a second consecutive 74 to finish on 4-over-par, but as it was on day one, it was all about Woods.
As Woods said, he began poorly, with a bogey at the 1st, but he bounced back quickly with birdies at the 6th and 7th to turn in 35.
A bogey at 10 dropped him back again but he rebounded with three straight birdies from 14, only to bogey the last and fall back to 7- under-par.
Woods said Hazeltine was not the kind of course where you could take a rip at the ball and attack the flags without taking big risks.
'You just plod along and see what happens,' he said. 'I got off to a poor start and just hung in there, but the wind is supposed to get up again tomorrow, so we'll see what happens.'
Despite the bogey at the last, though, Woods still has a four- shot cushion after the pack, led by Harrington, who despite also bogeying the last, showed plenty of character to stay in the mix.
Three consecutive bogeys, starting at the 11th hole, had him going backwards fast but he found birdies at 14 and 15.
'I had a bad run in the middle of the round but never really felt comfortable on the greens,' Harrington said. 'I suppose I'd be happy enough if I was starting off the week.'
Singh said he was disappointed not to take advantage of opportunities in his level-par 72, even if he is still tied for second on 3-under.
'Even par is a good round, but I had a lot of chances and two small missed putts here and there,' he said. 'I could have scored one or two more better than I did and every time I made a birdie I followed up with a bogey or vice versa.'
When Mickelson finished his round on 4-over-par, he must have thought he would miss the cut, but the wind caused the scoring to rise and he snuck in right on the mark, albeit 11 shots behind Woods.
It could have been a lot worse for the American, though, whose eagle at the par-five 7th hole proved crucial in keeping him in. Spaniard Sergio Garcia was not so lucky, though, double bogeying the last to card a 78 and finish on 5-over-par, one too many.
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