Players Championship : Stewart Fires 65 in the Wind for One-Shot Lead

In times past, Payne Stewart’s driver would rattle in his hands, his irons would shake and his putter would sputter when he heard two words.

Chocolate cake.

Stewart could gain 5 pounds if a dessert cart were wheeled past.

He also liked his beer, but when it became clear to him that there were more hops in his beer mug than in his ball on the fairway, Stewart decided to do something about it.

So when he shot a 65 Friday in the second round of the Players Championship, there was only one way to describe his lead: Slim.

Stewart, whose 36-hole score is 136, held a one-shot advantage over first-round leader Mark McCumber, who toured the TPC-Sawgrass course in par 72, and Mike Reid, who shot a 69. Morris Hatalsky, Dan Pohl and David Frost were tied at 138 after a day in the wind tunnel.

There was an increase in the wind as well as the scores Friday, not to mention criticism of the Pete Dye course, which McCumber called, in none-too-friendly tones, a “target” golf course.

“It’s a little bit contrived with a lot of 90-degree angles, and since it’s a target golf course, you’ve got to put the ball up in the air,” McCumber said.

Because of the wind, up in the air was usually a bad place for the ball to be Friday.

McCumber dropped out of a tie for the lead when he missed the green and bogeyed the 16th in a fierce wind.

“I didn’t feel like I was scrambling,” said McCumber, who was obviously playing a round of Old McDonald golf.

“I was hitting good shots, but I was catching a wrong gust here and a wrong gust there,” he said.

Stewart, who was only one under after the first round, shot himself into the lead despite the gusty conditions.

“When I woke up this morning, I thought it was going to be a nice, calm day like yesterday,” he said. “It wasn’t.

“But, on a whole, it was the best ball-striking round I’ve had in a long time,” Stewart said. “If you aren’t hitting the ball very solidly on this course in the wind, then you’re going to be very frustrated.”

McCumber was clearly in that category, but at least he’s still playing the final 36 holes. A number of big-name players got blown out of the tournament, missing the cut.

All four of the winners in last year’s major tournaments, for instance, are gone--Larry Mize of the Masters, Nick Faldo of the British Open, Larry Nelson of the PGA and Scott Simpson of the U. S. Open. They were joined by an illustrious group of Seve Ballesteros, Tom Watson, Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller, Raymond Floyd and Ian Woosnam.

Ballesteros shot a 78, and Woosnam and Faldo had 79s. But the worst score of the day was Mac O’Grady’s 83, which gave him a 36-hole total of 162 and left him dead last in the field.

O’Grady, the most outspoken critic of the course, said he won’t play here again.

The wind knocked down the lowscores. Only 8 golfers shot in the 60s Friday, compared to 16 in Thursday’s first round.

After getting three birdies in his first nine holes, Stewart birdied two par-4s before he bogeyed No. 6 when he missed the green. But he came right back with a birdie on the next hole after a 5-iron got him within 5 feet.

Then he eagled No. 9, his closing hole. Stewart drove downwind with the gusts slightly right to left. His second shot was what he called “a roping 3-wood, a rope hook.”

How’s that again?

“I’m just trying to add a little color--we’re so boring out here,” Stewart said.

The ball stopped 15 feet from the cup, and he knocked it in from there for his eagle.

Stewart said he lost 10 pounds by watching what he ate and drank after making a New Year’s resolution to diet. But when he went on vacation to Australia, he cut loose.

“All the weight I lost in January I got right back,” Stewart said.

Even so, Stewart said he still takes better care of himself than he used to. He is a regular visitor to the exercise trailer at tournaments.

Stewart also refused to back down from his stand on the TPC-Sawgrass layout, which he had called “fabricated” early in the week.

“I still wouldn’t change my mind about what I said, no,” Stewart said. “Even if I win, I would gratefully accept the trophy and the 10-year exemption, sure.”

Hatalsky’s 68 included the day’s second eagle on No. 9, which played 582 yards. From 69 yards out, Hatalsky put the ball into the cup with a sand wedge.

“The first nine was a real loving, caring woman, and the back nine, she was real mean,” Hatalsky said. “The wind can play such tricks out there that you can lose your focus.”

Stewart considered himself fortunate.

“Because of the wind, if you’re not hitting the ball solidly, this course can be real frustrating,” he said. “I convinced myself I could make shots. I finally did.”