AUGUSTA, Ga. — As the Masters turned blustery, Tiger Woods plodded through another ho-hum round Friday while Chad Campbell held on to the 36-hole lead — a familiar position.
Campbell followed a 7-under-par 65 in the opening round with a nothing-to-be-ashamed-of 70 in much tougher conditions, heading to the clubhouse still holding the top spot on the leaderboard.
If his score stands, it will be the second time Campbell has gone to the weekend with a Masters lead.
He was in the same spot three years ago but fell back during a rain-plagued third round that extended over two days, finishing in a tie for third, three strokes behind winner Phil Mickelson.
“It’s nice that I have been in this position before,” Campbell said. “There’s a long ways to go, but it’s definitely nice to not be on foreign ground.”
Woods, who opened with a 70 that could have been much better without a balky putter, was even through 14 holes Friday and needing a late rally to avoid losing ground to Campbell. The biggest charge was provided by Kenny Perry, a 4-under score that moved him within a stroke of the lead as he headed to the last two holes.
Stephen Ames of Calgary was 3-under through 10 holes to move within seven shots of Campbell while Mike Weir of Bright’s Grove, Ont., was struggling at 3-over through seven.
Augusta National struck back after hosting a birdiefest Thursday, when 19 players shot in the 60s and 38 broke par, both records for an opening day at the Masters.
Twenty-four hours later, the wind had picked up considerably, swirling through Amen Corner and firming up the greens. Puffy, white clouds whipped across the sky, and the forecast warned of possible afternoon storms. Plus, the pins were placed in more devious spots, leaving little room for error.
Larry Mize went from 67 to 76. Tom Watson soared from 74 to 83 — his worst score ever at Augusta. Amateur Danny Lee played the first five holes after the turn at 10 over, including a quintuple-bogey 9 at the 10th.
“Obviously today is a lot more difficult,” said Todd Hamilton, the 2004 British Open champion who stayed in contention with a 70. “If you have no wind, the guys on the Tour are going to play very good. You throw in some wind with a tough setup golf course, that’s when you see some trying times.”
Campbell got off to the best start in Masters history Thursday, making birdies on the first five holes.
He strung together four in a row on the back side, challenging the course record before bogeys at 17 and 18 left him with a 7-under 65.
He got off to another strong start Friday with birdies on two of the first four holes. He got to 11 under when a brilliant approach at No. 10 left him with a short birdie putt, vaulting him five strokes ahead of anyone in the field.
But Campbell ran into trouble in Amen Corner. He flubbed a chip at the 11th, leading to his first bogey of the day, and had another at the picturesque 12th. Things looked really grim when he bogeyed the 17th as well, but a 25-foot birdie on the final hole put him in a much better state of mind.
“I was a little unhappy with the way I played the back nine,” Campbell said. “A birdie on the last hole definitely gives me confidence going to the weekend.”
