Second-round 71 has Nicklaus two shots back
Associated Press
LUTZ, Fla. (Feb. 17) -- Hale Irwin shot a 5-under-par 66 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead over Jack Nicklaus and five others after the second round of the Verizon Classic.
Irwin made a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole.
"I feel like my game is not particularly sharp," said Irwin, playing his first full-field event of the year. "What's carrying the day is being fresh."
He had four birdies on the back nine to finish with a 6-under 136 total on the TPC of Tampa Bay.
"The thing is the course played nicely," Irwin said. "If you playing well, I think the course is there for the taking. If you're not playing well, it's not giving many breaks."
Nicklaus, who shared the first-round lead with Doug Tewell after a 67, shot a 71 to join defending champion Bruce Fleisher (69), Gil Morgan (67), Bob Gilder (68), Jose Maria Canizares (68) and Bobby Walzel (68) at 138.
"I haven't been in the position to win a golf tournament for a long time," said Nicklaus, who had hip replacement surgery two years ago. "It would be neat. I'd love to win. It would give more confidence and I would play more. I'd really enjoy it."
The 61-year-old star, winless since 1996, has dropped almost 20 pounds over the past two months since noticing a marked improvement in his hip,and at 187 pounds, is just one pound heavier than when he won the 1986 Masters.
"I played decently," Nicklaus said. "I'm not unhappy with the way I played. I hit the ball well, I just didn't make the putts I made yesterday."
Tewell (72) and Dana Quigley (65) topped a six-player group at 139.
"I've had lower rounds, but probably not on this hard of a course," Quigley said. "I had a great day with my putter."
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