Bland leads Dunlap by one at Senior PGA with Els and Stricker both lurking
BENTON HARBOR, Mich. — A few weeks ago, playing in the 84th KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship might not have been in the plans of both Richard Bland and Scott Dunlap.
After Friday’s storm-interrupted second round at Harbor Shores, the 51-year-old Bland, an Englishman who plays on the LIV Tour, and the 60-year-old Dunlap, a 60-year-old Champions Tour journeyman from Sarasota, Fla., find themselves on the top of the leaderboard of the second senior major of the season.
But lurking not far behind them is “The Big Easy” — South Africa’s Ernie Els, who has four majors on his résumé.
Opening day: On day to go low, Green and Bland shoot 7-under 64s to lead Senior PGA at Harbor Shores
Bland followed his Thursday afternoon, seven-under 64 (which had him tied with Australia’s Richard Green for the first-round lead) with a Friday morning, five-under 66 for a 12-under 130 total for his two trips around the Jack Nicklaus design just off Lake Michigan.
Bland, here on a special invitation from the PGA of America, was one stroke ahead of Dunlap, who earlier this month ended a 10-year victory drought at the Insperity Invitational. Friday morning, Dunlap produced a six-under 65 and was at 131, two strokes ahead of fellow Florida Gators alumnus Chris DiMarco, who also carded a 65.
Bland, Dunlap and DiMarco all had finished their work early Friday afternoon before storm clouds formed over Harbor Shores and halted play for almost 90 minutes. When play resumed at 4:49 p.m., the wind direction had changed — from the west to the southeast — and its velocity increased, making patience even more of a virtue.
Brian Gay, another Gator alumnus, carded his second straight 67 and tied for fourth at eight-under 134 with the 54-year-old Els.
Senior PGA notes: Harbor Shores provides good memories for Broadhurst, Monty, Leonard and Els
Els, who has yet to win a senior major, fired a seven-under 64, making five birdies in his first six holes before the delay, and then adding three more afterward before bogeying the par-5, 576-yard ninth hole.
“I played really great for 17 fricking holes,” Els said after making eight birdies during that stretch before nearly going into the hazard at the par-5, 576-yard ninth hole on way to a bogey. “Even with that bogey, I’m where I want to be.”
And so is Bland despite a bulky putter at times. He still managed to make six birdies to offset one bogey. “My tee to green game has been pretty much where it’s been for a while now,” Bland said. “I don’t see that changing. Just got to tidy it up a little bit on the greens.”
Dunlap made seven birdies and one bogey in his round. “Obviously, I won recently so I got a little bit of confidence,” he said of his victory in early May when he shot rounds of 65 and 70 on Saturday at Insperity before the final round was rained out. “That’s as good of golf as I’ve got. It’s all kind of come out in these two rounds. See what we have left in the tank for the final two.”
The 55-year-old DiMarco, with wife Amy on his bag, had five birdies, one bogey, and an eagle at the 10th hole where he holed out a bunker shot.
“I hit the ball really good today, putted really good,” said DiMarco, who won the 1988 Western Amateur down the road from here at Point O’Woods. “For some reason I really like this golf course. Just fits my eye well.”
Gay had six birdies and two bogeys — at Nos. 18 and 1 — around the storm. “I just drove the ball better today,” he said.
Australia’s Green, the left-handed, first-round co-leader with Bland, rode a five birdie-five bogey roller-coaster through his afternoon round over even-par 71 and was tied for sixth place five shots behind Bland. Also with him at seven-under 135 were Canada’s Mike Weir (69), Sweden’s Joakim Haeggman (66) and Americans Stewart Cink (68) and Steve Stricker (69). Stricker is the defending Senior PGA champion and seeking his eighth senior major.
The field hustled to try and finish 36 holes, with the cut coming at three-over 145. Among the 85 golfers making it was 66-year-old Bernhard Langer, who shot an even-par 71 which included a triple bogey at the sixth hole. Langer, who has 12 senior majors and a record 46 PGA Champions Tour victories to his credit, is playing with a golf cart after Achilles’ tendon surgery just 3½ months ago.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Champions Tour KitchenAid Senior PGA championship round 2 Harbor Shores
