Watson ‘Of Old' Jumps Into Lead

By Ken Klavon, USGA

Hutchinson, Kan. – Links-style similarities. Tom Watson. Major championship. See the connection?

Watson, the winner of five British Opens, bolted to the front of the pack by notching a 4-under-par 66 Friday morning in the second round of the U.S. Senior Open at Prairie Dunes Country Club to drop to 4-under 136 overall.

Mark James, holder of one senior major title, had an opportunity to match Watson's score, but a bogey on his final hole relegated him to a second-place tie with defending champion Allen Doyle at 3-under 137. First round co-leaders Dave Barr and Jay Haas, both at 3 under, were scheduled to go off in the afternoon.

Questions abounded as to whether the leaders were happy at the midway point.

"Yeah," said James, who has been battling a litany of injuries this year. "I have not been doing great the last few tournaments."

Said Doyle, after equaling the 27 putts he took on Thursday: "It's nice to come back, and it certainly wouldn't have been as nice if I shot 75-75 and was ordering the plane early. That wouldn't have sat quite as well."

"It's been a very satisfying round from a scoring standpoint," said Watson.

Always the perfectionist, Watson wanted to clarify what he meant since it's rather difficult to be dissatisfied with a 66 in a major championship. He said he felt his ball-striking was weak, citing nine fairways and 12 greens hit. He compared his game to an inefficient engine.

Mark James chips toward the 17th green Friday. He entered the clubhouse tied for second at 3-under 137. (John Mummert/USGA)

"I'm like one of those engines – the old four, six, eight – you never know what cylinder you're going to be hitting on," said Watson smiling.

While James methodically chugged around the course, book-ending bogeys to start and finish his day, Watson languished over familiar feelings that the Perry Maxwell design evoked. "Not a question, this is very linksy," he said.

On top of that, that Kansas native definitely had the hometown crowd on his side as they elicited guttural cheers whenever they could.

And he gave them good reason. For it's been rare that the putter has been his friend. It admittedly torments him on short putts, where of late a problem lies in his inability to bring the club straight back and through. But that wasn't the case as 11 of his 26 putts were of the one-putt variety. Six of those one-putts represented his arsenal of birdies in the round.

"Had the Watson-of-old feeling out there today," said the veteran of six previous U.S. Senior Open championships.

Watson, who started on No. 10, and James were neck and neck throughout the morning. James began on the first hole, suffering his first bogey of the championship by three-putting, before righting himself. He went to 3 under with consecutive birdies at the fifth and sixth holes. About the same time, Watson had back-to-back birdies on 17 and 18 to provide James company.

Watson nursed in putts 6 and 12 feet, respectively, over modest humps. He hiccupped on the uphill, par-3 fourth, eventually three-putting from 20 feet to fall to 2 under.

He entered the clubhouse on a roller-coaster, first getting up and down from a bunker on seven as he buried an 8-foot birdie putt, before bogeying the next hole when he couldn't convert a par putt from 20 feet. He birdied his finishing hole, from 4 feet, just as James' streak of seven consecutive pars came to end.

On the home hole, James scrambled from the left rough from tee to green. He pulled the 8-foot par offering that seemed to break a mile.

"More than I envisioned," said James smiling.

Doyle endured three bogeys, but perhaps the most costly blemish occurred on the par-4 ninth, which played as the hardest hole at Prairie Dunes on Thursday. Tied with Watson at 4 under, had a chance to match Watson at 136, but misread the break on an 8-footer and finished at 3-under 137.

"You don't like to end on that note," said Doyle.

Playing three groups behind, Doyle heard the roars for Watson all day, afterward relishing in the fact that few pay attention to him.

"When I say you hope you don't get paired with him, I think it would be better for whoever to be paired with someone more mortal than Tom in Kansas," said Doyle, in search of his fourth senior major.

Hometown advantage or not, Watson finds himself in familiar territory in the championship. He led after the second round last year and after the opening day in 2003. He, more than anyone, realizes what he needs to do to seal the deal.

"Basically it's a trust in your ability to do the job," he said. "Right now my trust in my golf swing is a little bit lacking.

"You know, it's great playing in front of my home crowd. … But I have great respect for this golf course. This golf course can eat your lunch if you're not playing very well."

Ken Klavon is the USGA Web Editor. E-mail with questions or comments at kklavon@usga.org.