Fourth Eagle in Three Rounds Helps Wadsworth Gain Six-Way Tie for Lead

Fred Wadsworth pitched in for an eagle-2 that helped move him into a six-way tie for the lead Friday in the second round of the $700,000 Honda golf tournament.

Wadsworth, who has four eagles in his last three competitive rounds, dropped a 161-yard 8-iron shot into the cup on his ninth hole of the day. He finished with a four-under-par 68, reaching the halfway point of the event on the TPC course at Eagle Trace with a 137.

That left him in a tie with Ken Brown of Scotland, Tommy Nakajima of Japan, Dan Forsman, Ed Fiori and Jodie Mudd.

Scotland’s Sandy Lyle shot a 64 and was tied with Tom Byrum and Joey Sindelar at 138. Byrum had a 68 and Sindelar a 70.

Nakajima and Fiori shot 67s. Nakajima missed only one green and wasn’t even close to making a bogey. He missed four birdie opportunities of eight feet or less. Fiori ran off one string of four consecutive birdies. But he chipped in once and said, “I got away with a little bit. It could have been 72 or 73 real easy.”

Mudd and Forsman also had 67s. Mudd’s round was built around a fast start--birdies on four of the first five holes--and Forsman’s around a fast finish--birdies on four of the last five.

Brown’s 68 was marred only by a bogey-6 on the fifth, where he hit a 3-wood second shot into the water. “I got a little ambitious,” he said, “but it was worth the risk.”