GOLF / PHOENIX OPEN : Armour Gets the Breaks to Take First

Tom Purtzer’s 15-foot birdie putt on the last hole hit a spike mark and veered off course Friday, leaving Tommy Armour III alone in first place in the uncompleted second round of the Phoenix Open.

The miss left Purtzer, a local favorite whose parents and friends gathered in his gallery, with a second-round 68 and a nine-under-par 133 total at the TPC of Scottsdale.

Armour, who has yet to win in a 10-year career that has included three-season stints on the Asian and European tours, shot a 67 that left him at 132.

The start of the day’s play was delayed 45 minutes by frost. The delay backed up the field and left 20 players stranded by darkness.

They marked their positions and are scheduled to finish their rounds this morning.

None of those left on the course appeared to have any chance of overtaking the leaders.

Defending champion Mark Calcavecchia shared third place at 135 with Billy Ray Brown, Jay Don Blake, Jodie Mudd, Clark Burroughs and Canadian Dave Barr.

Brown and Mudd moved up with 66s, and Blake and Burroughs shot 67s. Barr had a 68.

The greens on the semi-private course, subjected to 58,000 rounds a year, continued to be a problem. They were rough for the early players. For those with late times “they were scary,” said Mark McCumber, who shot a 73.

For the second day in a row, one of those in the first threesome off the tee set the pace. Thursday, it was Bobby Wadkins, who soared to a 76 Friday and 141 total.

Armour also had his problems. He scored his first bogey on his 18th hole, when a short par-saving putt bounced away.

Purtzer said the turning point in his effort was a 45-foot sand shot that found the cup for a birdie on the 10th hole. It was the third time in two days he had holed from off the green.