Norman Gets Within Three
6:59 p.m. -Greg Norman ended his round on a high note. He birdied the ninth hole to complete a 2-under day and heads into the weekend three strokes behind leader Tim Jackson.
Sindelar Checks In At 10 Under
6:23 p.m. - Joey Sindelar couldn't catch Tim Jackson again. He had a chance, though. He chipped to 6 feet but couldn't the ball slid by the left edge. In any event, he finished 4-under 68 for the round, just one shot off the lead.
Sindelar was asked about his position and trailing Tim Jackson, who he knew nothing about.
"I know I'm thrilled to be in this position and I do this for a living," said Sindelar. "He's a great story."
Sindelar indicated that the combination of the sun and low humidty helped dry out the greens. He noticed Friday that 5- and 6-iron shots didn't hold on the greens.
"Logic says if there are any front pins, you'd better be in the fairway," said Sindelar.
Three-Putt Hurts Sindelar
5:51 p.m. - Joey Sindelar dropped a stroke after hooking his drive on the seventh hole and three-putting from 25 feet for bogey. Off the tee, he pulled the ball in the gallery before rebounding with a miraculous shot to the green. Still, it wasn't enough.
Sindelar Finally Catches Jackson
5:30 p.m. - On the par-3 sixth, Joey Sindelar stuck his approch shot to 20 feet of the flagstick. The ball, just off the green sails in on his birdie putt. He's 11-under total for the championship.
Forsman Eagles
4:51 p.m. - Shortly after Greg Norman (six under) chipped in for birdie on the par-4 first hole, Dan Forsman topped that with a chip-in eagle off the back fringe on the par-5 ninth. Forsman had overshot the green on his approach shot, then with 25 feet to the hole, he hit a lazy wedge that skirted the ball onto the green and in. Forsman dropped to seven under for the championship.
Sindelar Can't Catch Jackson
4:34 p.m. - Facing a left break, Joey Sindelar castigated himself after his ball ran by the second hole. He missed a golden birdie opportunity, and what's more, to catch leader Tim Jackson.
Vaughan Misses
4:23 p.m. - Bruce Vaughan probably wishes he could have his birdie putt back on on the par-3 17th. Looking at a 6-footer, he pushed the ball a couple feet by.
Joey Sindelar continued his strong iron play, sticking his approach shot on No. 2 to within 4 feet of the flagstick. Should he make the putt, he'll move into a tie for the lead.
Sindelar Gains Another Stroke
4:16 p.m. - After reaching the green in two on the first hole, Joey Sindelar set himself up for another birdie. This one was from 4 feet out, offering a straight read. Sindelar casually knocked it in to drop to 10 under par, one stroke behind amateur Tim Jackson.
With the breeze picking up, others are having trouble. Greg Norman and Bruce Vaughan both bogeying the 17th and 16th holes, respectively, stand at five under.
Sindelar Ties Funk
4:04 p.m.- Joey Sindelar knocked in a 4-footer for birdie to get to nine under and move into a tie for second with Fred Funk. Sindelar made the turn 3-under 33.
Norman Birdies
3:35 - Greg Norman stroked his 30-foot eagle try on No. 15 a little soft. The ball ran out of legs, but he was able to convert the tap-in for birdie to get back to six under.
Sindelar Hanging In
2:58 p.m. -Joey Sindelar had a tap-in par after pitching out of the greenside rough on the 14th hole. He birdied the par-3 13th to get to eight under. Greg Norman, a first-round leader, birdied the 13th with a 4-foot putt. He's six under.
Loren Roberts and Bruce Vaughan were also six under par.
Play Continues
2:25 p.m. -Joey Sindelar birdied his second hole, the 10th, to fall to seven under. Much of the focus has been on Tim Jackson, who held court after his round. The soft-spoken Jackson welled up when he discussed the fact that his son is on his bag this week. So far he said the week has been "all popsicles and lollipops."
Jackson Puts Final Touch On Round
1:55 p.m. - If amateur Tim Jackson, a two-time USGA champion, is going to falter, he's not showing it. The 50-year-old Tennessean sank a 4-foot putt for birdie on the 18th green to finish 5-under 67 today. He's holding down at 11-under 133 for the championship.
"You just can't get ahead of yourself on this golf course," said the low-key Jackson in his southern dialect.
"I don't see how the guys do it, week in, week out."
Funk Comes In Low
1:16 p.m. - Fred Funk walked off the ninth green, his final hole, with a birdie. It completed a 5-under 67 day that left him nine under for the championship and one stroke behind leader Tim Jackson, who bogeyed his 16th hole. In spite of lingering injuries, the most severe of which will likely require knee surgery, Funk had a bogey-free round with three birdies peppering his final nine.
Last week in the British Senior Open, he lost in a playoff to Loren Roberts. In last year's Senior Open at The Broadmoor, Funk also placed runner-up.
"I'm still fighting those [injuries]," he said, "but I'm pleased with the way I've been playing. ... I'll just keep knocking on the door."
Freeman In Clubhouse With 68
12:56 p.m. - While Tim Jackson reached double digits (11 under through 15 holes), Bob Tway silently positioned himself near the top. With a birdie on No. 15, he's 6-under total, tied with Robin Freeman and three others who had afternoon tee times.
Freeman entered the clubhouse after shooting 4-under 68. His highlight shot of the round came on the 18th hole. After driving into the left rough, Freeman used an 8-iron to get on the green before sinking a 45-foot putt for birdie.
"I made a stupid putt," said Freeman, playing in his first Senior Open. "It broke three different ways."
Asked if he was happy with his current T-3 position, he added: "Well, yeah. If someone doesn't go nuts this afternoon, I should be fine."
Jackson Won't Relent
12:11 p.m. - Amateur Tim Jackson dropped to nine under par with consecutive birdies on the 11th and 12th holes. He leads Fred Funk by one stroke, and David Eger and Robin Freeman by two. First round co-leaders Dan Forsman, Greg Norman and Joey Sindelar all had afternoon tee times.
No amateur has ever won the Senior Open. The last amateur player to win any USGA Open was Catherine Lacoste in 1967.
Scores Holding Steady
11:39 a.m. - It's a picture-perfect day today. Blue skies. No clouds in sight. Roughly 74. Conditions are again benign, but not as benign as Thursday. There is a bit of a breeze that can alter shots. Scores aren't dropping as quickly as they did Thursday on pretty much the exact same setup.
Andy Bean stumbled on the par-4 12th, taking bogey, but he bounced back fine with a birdie on the next hole to crawl back to six under.
David Eger, formerly of the USGA, has entered the mix. With a 4-under 32 on his first nine, he's five under.
Funk, Jackson On Top
10:53 a.m. - After making the turn at six under, Fred Funk joined Tim Jackson atop the leaderboard with a birdie on the par-4 10th. Both are seven under for the championship. Jackson is trying to become the first amateur to win the Senior Open.
Bean Is Through 9
10:37 a.m. - Andy Bean closed out his front nine with a birdie. He shot one under par, 6-under aggregate for the championship. The 11-time PGA Tour winner has appeared in five U.S. Senior Opens, his best finish a T-5 in 2006 at Prairie Dunes.
He's still trying to get comfortable with new clubs, which were stolen last year.
Withdrawals
10:25 a.m. - Just received word that Scott Hoch just withdrew with “some sort of injury.” Jim Dent has also withdrawn.
Funk Makes Move
10:15 a.m. - Fred Funk, runner-up to Eduardo Romero last year, birdied par-5 15th to move into second at six under. He's carved out two birdies today. This is his third U.S. Senior Open.
Jackson, Bean Maintaining
9:47 a.m. - Leader Tim Jackson and Andy Bean have stabilized. Jackson stands at seven under par through three holes while Beanis at five under through six. Fred Funk fell to five under with a birdie on No. 1.
Course Setup
9:44 a.m. - This just in from a USGA official:
Green Speeds – approximately 12 feet on the Stimpmeter. All greens were double cut this morning after which Stimpmeter readings were taken. Any green that was below 11-feet 6-inches was rolled.
All grass inside the ropes is being cut daily with the exception of the 3 ½-inch rough, which is being cut every other day. Morning preparation calls for tees, putting greens, fairways and the intermediate rough (1 ½ inches) to be cut. The 2 ½-inch and 3 ½-inch rough will be cut in the evenings. All bunker faces/banks were cut to 2 ½ inches last night.
Corrective watering was done last evening as well as this morning to all putting greens that required such to insure consistent firmness.
The following tees are being used on the holes with multiple teeing grounds: Hole 5 (600), Hole 9 (520), Hole 12 (419), Hole 14 (455) and Hole 18 (455)
Par 3s
Hole 3 – 175
Hole 6 – 195
Hole 13 – 172
Hole 17 – 187
The following is a summary of the weather for the day from our Thor-Guard meteorologist, Greg Quinn:
We can expect a near perfect day, especially considering it is the last day of July, with below
normal temperatures and a cool breeze from the northwest. With today’s high 6-7 degrees below
normal, this month in Indianapolis will go down as the coolest July on record. Temperatures
will be mainly in the 70s across our area today with only a few clouds expected during the
afternoon hours. Temperatures will drop into the upper 50s to low 60s tonight with another
nice day expected on Saturday. Another cold front will push through on Saturday night allowing
for another shot of thunderstorms overnight on Saturday.
Jackson By Himself
9:22 a.m. - Amateur Tim Jackson continues his torrid play, birdieing the first hole to grab the outright lead.
Bean Back In Lead
8:50 a.m. - It didn't take Andy Bean long to gain a stroke. On the second hole, he hit a mid-range putt for a birdie. He's tied with Dan Forsman, Tim Jackson, Greg Norman and Joey Sindelar at six under par.
Running Updates
Carmel, Ind. - We'll be providing updates as the action unfolds. If you have a comment or concern, feel free to e-mail Ken Klavon, Editor of New Media at kklavon@usga.org.
