Groups we're watching: Round 2
If you haven't already called in to work, you may want to do it now -- or at least leave early. All times are eastern.
Aaron Baddeley, Camilo Villegas, Lee Westwood
Tee time: 10:56 a.m.
Total TOUR wins: 3
Why you should watch: This threesome was the last to tee off in round one. Because of that, they played the final two holes in nearly total darkness. The players had the option to tell an official they'd rather finish in the morning, but elected not to. Whether it was the dark, or just a couple of gaffes, the scorecards show that the trio played the final two holes in a collective 4-over-par -- one bogey for each Villegas and Westwood and two for Baddeley. Nonetheless, Westwood made a brilliant par on No. 18 to finish at 3-under par and will start the second round one shot off the lead. Baddeley is hoping to bounce back from a 3-over 75, while Villegas looks to improve on a 1-over-par 73 (could have been even-par 72 without the bogey on 18).
| 2008 Stat comparison |
| Baddeley |
8 |
6 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
1 |
5 |
70.84 |
| Villegas |
7 |
6 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
2 |
70.23 |
| Westwood |
4 |
3 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
2 |
71.02 |
|
Mark O'Meara, a-Trip Kuehne, Ian Poulter
Tee time: 11:29 p.m.
Total TOUR wins: 16
Why you should watch: All 16 of those PGA TOUR wins belong to Mark O'Meara, including his first major -- the Masters -- in 1998. O'Meara carded a fine, somewhat unexpected 1-under-par 71 on Thursday that left him just three shots out of the lead. Kuehne, playing in the Masters by virtue of his win at the U.S. Mid-Amateur in 2007, had a rough start with his 6-over 78. Poulter meanwhile, enjoyed a hole-in-one on No. 16 on Thursday, on his way to a first-round score of 2-under-par 70.
| 2008 Stat comparison |
| O'Meara |
2 |
1 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
73.51 |
| Kuehne |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
| Poulter |
3 |
3 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
1 |
71.39 |
|
Jose Maria Olazabal, Liang Wen-chong, Rory Sabbatini
Tee time: 1:19 p.m.
Total TOUR wins: 10
Why you should watch: We don't know a whole lot about China's Liang Wen-Chong, but he struggled in the first round with a 4-over-par 76. As for Olazabal, he's the last European to win the Masters and that was in 1999. He's going to need a fine round on Friday to make the cut after opening with a 76. Finally, there's Sabbatini. Some might say his 3-over-par 75 on Thursday was predictable. That's certainly not because he hasn't got a ton of game. It's simply because he won Wednesday's Par 3 Contest and no player has ever won both the Par 3 and the Masters in the same week since the Par 3 started in 1960.
| 2008 Stat comparison |
| Olazabal |
1 |
1 |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
70.88 |
| Wen-chong |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
-- |
| Sabbatini |
7 |
7 |
-- |
1 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
70.62 |
|
.
MAJORSCHAMPIONSHIPS.COM is part of the Turner Entertainment Digital Network