Levi Moves Into Contention

Kettering, Ohio - Former PGA Tour Player of the Year Wayne Levi shot up the leaderboard at the U.S. Senior Open on Friday with a 4-under 67.

The 53-year-old Levi is no stranger to being in the hunt at the championship, as he tied for 6^th in 2003 and locked in at 15^th last year at Bellerive Country Club.

Levi's round was highlighted by seven birdies, including a 20-foot putt on the par-4 17^th to move to 8 under. After a solid drive and approach on 18, Levi gave one back to the field with a three-putt from 25 feet after his birdie putt lipped out. Despite the sour note to end the round, Levi was pleased with his performance.

"You don't like to (bogey the last hole), but that's the way it goes," he said. "On some of the key driving holes I drove the ball better today than I did yesterday. That's what produced a good round."

Wayne Levi moved two shots off the lead Friday with a solid 4-under 67. (John Mummert/USGA)

To say that Levi has been driving the ball well may be an understatement – he has only missed one fairway thus far. Although his accuracy has been a key, his two quick birdies out of the gate seemed to be what jump-started his round today.

"That gives you a good mindset when you're out there," he said. "You're kind of forging ahead. If you bogey the first hole, you're kind of playing defensively already. I drove the ball in the fairway and gave myself a lot of opportunities to make birdies."

After a fast start to the 2005 Champions Tour season that included seven top-10 finishes in his first eight events, Levi has continued his solid play, evidenced by his residing in ninth place on the money list. With his best finish a tie for 2^nd at the Toshiba Senior Classic, Levi is ready to be back in the winner's circle.

When asked whether his start to the season made him hungrier for a win, Levi said: "Yes. I'm there. As long as you stay in contention and keep shooting sub-70 rounds, there is going to be a time this year and you're finally going to succeed and breakthrough to win."

No stranger to winning, Levi was a 12-time winner on the PGA Tour, including four wins during his Player of the Year season in 1990. He has one victory in each of the last two seasons on the Champions Tour, but is still searching for his first victory of 2005.

If he keeps it close come Sunday, who knows, he could be the one holding the Francis D. Ouimet Memorial Senior Open Championship Trophy.

Ryan Morgan is a Programs Associate for the USGA. E-mail him with questions or comments at rmorgan@usga.org.