Lawrie shares clubhouse lead after solid 68
Peter Lawrie has shot a four-under-par 68 to share the clubhouse lead with David Howell and defending champion Angel Cabrera at the BMW Championship at Wentworth today.
It was one more than the round which made him joint leader after day one a year ago. The Dubliner will hope to hang around on the leaderboard a lot longer this time.
Howell overcame his “dodgy” back to set the pace. The European Order of Merit leader took four weeks off after the Masters and after returning at the British Masters took last week off as well.
He birdied the fourth, sixth and seventh to turn in 32, picked up another shot at the short 10th and after making his only mistake on the short 14th added another birdie on the lengthened 610-yard 17th.
He was playing with Cabrera, who as one of the biggest hitters in golf does not mind one little bit that after heavy rain the course is playing extra long.
Two of the tees were moved forward because of the sodden fairways and placing of the ball was allowed as well.
Ian Poulter, who crashed out of contention for the Irish Open with a closing 85 on Monday, shared the lead for a while, but had to be content with a 69 after what he called “a mystery” on the 16th.
From the middle of the fairway Poulter consulted with his caddie over the yardage, hit his shot and was stunned when it came up 30 yards short.
“It was just one of those oversights that happens very rarely,” he said. “I can’t remember the last time. We both looked from 10 yards away at what we thought was a red dot (distance marker), but got it wrong.
“It’s an easy mistake to make and it’s a great shame really.
“I’m in great form and unfortunately I’ve not managed to finish it off. But I’ve not forgotten how to.”
Three-time winner Colin Montgomerie is in danger of missing the cut for the eighth time in 10 tournaments after a one over par 73 and his playing partner Pádraig Harrington was only one better than that.
Both three-putted the last for pars – and for Harrington it followed a bogey six after he had drive into a bush on the long 17th and been forced to hack out.
Ernie Els, the man who has beefed-up 17 of the 18 holes by putting in an extra 30 bunkers and some new tees, was happy enough with a three under 69, but Irish Open champion Thomas Bjorn managed only a 74.
Kenneth Ferrie would have taken over at the top if he had birdied the two closing holes, but he made par fives at both and so joined the group on 69.
The later starters included Darren Clarke, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood and Retief Goosen, but while Goosen birdied two of the first three, Clarke bogeyed two of them.
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