CHARLOTTE OBSERVER
By Ron Green Jr.
rgreenjr@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Friday, Apr. 30, 2010
When the shock waves began to subside late Friday afternoon at the Wells Fargo Championship and the reality of Tiger Woods' double-bogey induced departure began to settle in, there was Billy Mayfair almost invisibly leading the tournament.
On a warm Friday that began with Phil Mickelson conjuring up memories of his recent Masters victory and ended with Woods carrying his shoe bag and belongings out of the Quail Hollow locker room two days earlier than expected, Mayfair was quietly atop a jammed leader board.
It didn't feel so much like Mayfair was in command of the tournament, just that he was ahead when all the shuffling and head-scratching came to an overnight pause.
Mayfair, 43, barely made it to Charlotte in time Monday to qualify for the tournament and after rounds of 68-68, his 8-under par total was one better than Angel Cabrera and two better than Mickelson, course record-tying J.P. Hayes, Dustin Johnson and Paul Goydos.
Given the way things happened Friday, it was tough for Mayfair to get much sunlight even on a perfectly clear day.
Woods' collapse was so colossal and so surprising it came to dominate the day in much the way Woods has so many other times, only this time for a shockingly different reason. He started the back nine with three straight bogeys then made consecutive double bogeys at the 14th and 15th holes, tossing in a four-putt green at the 15th to encapsulate his day.
"It is what it is," Woods said after missing only the cut for only the sixth time in 241 professional starts. "Whatever it was, it wasn't good enough."
Woods'
playing partner, Stewart Cink, watched it for two days and, while packing his own bags, offered a brief summation of what happened.
"He hit a bunch of crooked shots," Cink said. "He didn't make the heroic up and downs he usually does. It kinda steamrolled on the back nine. It happens to the best of them."
On the other side of the emotional scale was Mickelson, who tacked a second-round 68 onto his opening 70 to move among the leaders. Before the dew had burned off, Mickelson had electrified the morning by shooting 4-under par 32 on his first nine holes, making an eagle at the par-5 15th.
That's where he ripped a classic Mickelson 5-iron uphill to within eight feet of the hole. Not bad a guy who spent his first two days in Charlotte living with an upside down stomach.
Mickelson made nine pars on his second nine holes but because the greens were borderline treacherous, no one moved far away. He even birdied the par-3 17th hole, his own chamber of horrors through the years.
"I kind of stalled on the back nine," Mickelson said. "I didn't take advantage of the par-5s. Other than that, I'll certainly take the round…The weekend should be good."
Mayfair made seven birdies on a Friday where eight players were tied for the lead at one point during the afternoon. He hit more 3-woods off the tee than usual to keep the ball in the firm fairways and made his own good fortune. He turned a potential double-bogey into a par when he chipped in at the long, par-4 fourth then he birdied the ninth hole (his 18th) to get the outright lead.
"Sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do," Mayfair said, referring to the 65 he shot at Carolina Golf Club Monday to get in the field. "A lot of guys will say they had to Monday qualify…but when they did they were hot coming in and just kind of kept rolling away. That's what I'm trying to do."
Cabrera shot 67 on Friday, using his immense power to attack Quail Hollow. It was the first time in eight rounds at Quail Hollow he has broken 70.
"I'm real close," Cabrera said through an interpreter. "I'm real close to being at the top of my game."
Myrtle Beach resident Dustin Johnson has the power to match Cabrera's and his second-round 65 didn't come as a great surprise, given the growing expectations surrounding his talent.
"I felt like the last two hours in my round, I really found my swing," Johnson said. "I'm really feeling good."