Defending Champ Pooley Stays Hunt

By Brendan Tierney, USGA

Toledo, Ohio -- At times it wasn’t pretty, but defending Senior Open champion Don Pooley stayed near the top of the leader board for a second consecutive day. Pooley’s second-round 73 left him eight strokes behind leader Vicente Fernandez, who carded a sizzling 64 to lead Tom Watson by one at the midway point of the championship.

"I played steadier yesterday than today," said Pooley, whose day included some difficult par saves on the eighth and ninth holes, a number of missed birdie opportunities and a shot that hit a spectator.

At the seventh hole, Pooley was buried in the rough with a difficult approach to the par-4 hole when his second shot hit a fan in the leg before coming to rest. The spectator was startled but not injured.

On the par-5 eighth, Pooley was faced with a difficult lie on the lip of a bunker, but still salvaged a par. A fat 9-iron approach at the ninth forced Pooley to again scramble for a par, which he successfully accomplished. His final nine holes were going smoothly until the 18 th, where he made a bogey after his approach to the short par 4 found a greenside bunker.

Aside from the stretch to finish off the front nine, Pooley was "very pleased" with his day. "I hit a lot of great shots, especially on the back nine," said Pooley, who defeated Tom Watson in a dramatic five-hole playoff last year at Caves Valley. "I was just unable to convert on some birdie opportunities."

The one birdie that he did register, however, was a beauty. After overshooting the green on the par-three sixth hole, he holed out a chip for his only birdie of the championship thus far.

In order to successfully defend his title Pooley will need a few more birdies over the next 36 holes to chase down Fernandez, Watson and Bruce Lietzke, who carded a 71 on Friday and sits three shots back in solo third.

"I expect both Watson and Lietzke to stay under par," he said of the two longtime touring pros. That, along with the stellar play of Fernandez, will make a comeback even tougher, but it would not be unprecedented.

Last year at Caves Valley, Pooley opened with rounds of 71 and 70 before exploding for a 63 on Saturday.

"I need to shoot at least one really good score this weekend," he said, "but that’s what happened last year."

Brendan Tierney is a second-year Fellow with the USGA Foundation. E-mail him at btierney@usga.org with questions and comments.