Edwards Has Lead, and Worst Is Over

After mastering Starr Pass, the dark side of the Nortel Open, Joel Edwards was looking forward to playing Tucson National.

The greens had something to do with it.

Take his 30-foot putt Friday for a birdie on No. 14.

“I knew I was going to make it before I hit it,” Edwards said about the longest of the seven birdie putts that helped him to a one-shot lead halfway through the tournament. “Some guys feel that all the time, I guess. Not me.”

The putt on No. 14 gleaned the second of three birdies in a row for Edwards, who finished at five-under-par 67 for a two-day total of nine-under 134.

David Toms and defending champion Phil Mickelson were one stroke behind. Bob Estes and Jim Gallagher Jr. were two shots behind at 136.

All five had played at Starr Pass on Thursday, when Edwards’ 67 was the best score on the par-71, 6,942-yard layout, whose tight fairways, undulating greens and thorn-choked underbrush make golfers pay for any errant shots.

On Friday, wind was an added factor and first-round leader Larry Nelson, who carded a 65 Thursday at Tucson National, had a triple-bogey seven on his second hole at Starr Pass, shot a 77 and completed the second round at 142.

Edwards, 34, has never finished higher than a tie for second or broken into the Top 100 money-winners. The Nortel’s first prize ($225,000) is $75,000 more than he’s made in a season.

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Sweden’s Liselotte Neumann shot a Tournament of Champions record six-under-par 66 at Orlando, Fla., taking a nine-stroke lead after the second round of the LPGA’s season-opening event.

Neumann, playing after a six-week layoff, has looked anything but rusty in shooting an 11-under-par 133 through 36 holes. She had eight birdies and two bogeys Friday.

She was the only golfer to break 70 on a cold, windy day.

Martha Nause, who began the day one stroke behind, shot a two-over-par 74 Friday and is in second place at two-under 142. Missie McGeorge shot 73 and is 10 shots behind.

After stringing together three birdies in a row--for the second time of the day--on 10, 11 and 12, Neumann reached six under par.

“Then I actually thought about a 64,” she said. “But then I had a couple of three-putts, or it would have been a lot better.”