Second 64 Gives Perry Five-Stroke Lead
By Mercer Baggs
Kenny Perry didnt want a repeat performance of what happened in Milwaukee.
One month ago he took a three-shot lead into the weekend at the Greater Milwaukee Open, only to fail to break 70 over his final two rounds and tie for fifth.
Once again, Perry was 3-up over the field through two rounds. And this time things were very different.
Needing to go low, Perry did just that, shooting his second straight 64 to extend his lead to five strokes entering the final round of the Buick Open.
'I'm really hungry to win again,' said Perry. 'The only thing on my mind is winning.'
Perry, winless since the 1995 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, stands at 22-under-par 194. Padraig Harrington (65) and Jim Furyk (66) are tied for second place at 17-under.
Furyk is currently 11th on the U.S. Ryder Cup points list. With one event remaining after this week before the team in finalized, Furyk is in prime position to secure his spot on the roster.
Justin Leonard needs a win to have a chance to make his way into the top-10 on the Ryder Cup points list prior to next weeks PGA Championship. Saturday, the 1999 Ryder Cup hero shot 9-under 63 to tie Chris DiMarco (65) and Bob Tway (67) for fourth place at 16-under.
Leonard is currently 23rd in the standings. DiMarco is 16th on the list.
For the second straight day, Perry started his round by birdieing the first three holes. But unlike Friday, when he turned 41, Perry stumbled, carding bogeys on the 4th, 6th and 7th holes.
Undaunted and not about to let thoughts of Milwaukee creep into his mind, Perry birdied Nos. 11, 12 and 15. He then holed his bunker shot for eagle on the par-5 16th to extend a one-shot lead to three.
Perry finished his remarkable back nine with birdies on the 17th and 18th holes.
'It was a roller-coaster round,' Perry said. 'It was up and down, up and down. Thank goodness I made a lot of birdies.'
Perrys 64 was a mirror image of the same score he shot in the second round. Friday, he shot 29-35. Saturday, he shot 35-29.
Along the way, Perry tied the best 36 holes played in the 43 years of this tournament. He also established a new 54-hole tournament scoring record.
Full-field scores from the Buick Open
BY Associated Press — August 02, 2009
Tiger Woods has another trophy for his overflowing collection. Woods shot a 69 Sunday and coasted to a three-shot victory with a 20-under 268 at the Buick Open for the 69th PGA Tour title of his career.
Tiger Woods says he didnt like the way he hit in the third round of the Buick Open. Woods was happy with how he scored, though, as a 65 Saturday put him at 17 under.
BY Rex Hoggard — July 31, 2009
From Buick to Firestone, Rex Hoggard notes the trunk-slammers and the commitment-makers.