Low scores gone with wind
TURNBERRY, Scotland — Steve Marino can thank his dad for making sure he got to the British Open.
Marino, a 29-year-old American who scuffled to qualify for the PGA Tour, looked right at home at Turnberry with a 2-under 68 today — an impressive score in windy conditions that put some bite in the ol' course.
He was one stroke behind Japan's Kenichi Kuboya, while first-round contenders such as Ben Curtis and Miguel Angel Jimenez tumbled down the leaderboard when the gusts whipping off the Firth of Clyde sent scores soaring.
Marino got in as an alternate, though he was forced to scramble when it became apparent he might be able to play in golf's oldest major for the first time.
"I didn't have a passport," he said. "I had to fly my dad down to Florida so he could get my passport and FedEx it to me. ... I wasn't even expecting to play in this tournament."
His father dashed down to the sunshine state from his home in Virginia, sent along the passport to his son playing in the John Deere Classic and flew back — all in the same day. When Shingo Katayama withdrew from the Open last weekend because of an injury, Marino got the spot.
On a day when low numbers were hard to come by — just ask Curtis, the 2003 Open champion who soared from an opening 65 to 80 — Marino pulled off one improbable shot after another for a 5-under 135 through two rounds.
He holed out a sand wedge from 116 yards at No. 3, and did the same with a bunker shot at the sixth for another birdie. There also was a 30-footer for birdie at No. 5, not to mention a 20-footer for eagle at the 17th.
"It was probably one of the best scoring rounds I've ever had," Marino said. "There were points in the round where I felt I was one-putting every hole. I really don't think I could have shot one stroke less today, to be honest with you."
Hey, someone deserved to have a little good fortune.
The pristine conditions on Thursday — partly sunny with barely a hint of breeze — gave way to thick, gray clouds, occasional sprinkles and strong gusts that are counted on to keep the players from taking target practice at the seaside course.
With the wind barely rippling the flags during the opening round, Jimenez shot a 64 — just one stroke off the major championship record — while Kuboya, Curtis and 59-year-old Tom Watson posted 65s. In all, 50 players broke par and another 17 were even.
That wasn't the case on today."We were hitting 3-woods into the wind from 210 yards," moaned Mike Weir, who struggled to a 78 after shooting 67 the previous day.Curtis' day started promisingly enough — a birdie at No. 1, a short par 4 with the wind at his back — but things quickly went south when he turned back into the teeth of the breeze. He bogeyed six of the next seven holes before a double bogey at No. 9 sent him around the turn with a 42. It didn't get much better from there, with two more bogeys and another double before straggled home with an 80 — 15 strokes higher than the previous day."I just hit it bad," Curtis said. "I got lucky yesterday with the weather. That helped me keep it in play. Today was different."But it looked as though the afternoon starters — Watson and Tiger Woods among them — might catch a break. The sun began to peak through the clouds around midday, and the breeze appeared to be dying down."It looks like it's clearing up," Weir said, glancing toward the sky behind the 18th hole. "It might be a nice break for those guys."
