HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. — Scott Parel walked off the course Friday thinking somebody would overtake him. Instead he’s halfway to his first PGA Tour Champions win – and a major at that.
Parel grabbed a one-stroke lead in the Constellation Senior Players Championship, shooting a 6-under 66 in the second round to reach 11 under.
Parel, 53, made seven birdies after starting the day two shots off the lead.
“I’ve been playing good golf, right there in contention a lot of times,” he said. “And that helps. The more you’re up there, the more comfortable you are. If you do it once every few weeks, then maybe you get a little bit uncomfortable. But I feel good right now.”
Parel remained in the lead when Jeff Maggert three-putted from about 15 feet to bogey the par-4 18th. That left Maggert (68) tied with Brandt Jobe (67) at 10 under in the fourth of five majors on the tour’s schedule.
PGA: Michael Kim took a four-shot lead at the John Deere Classic at Silvis, Illinois, which was suspended twice because of weather concerns.
Kim, who is winless in 84 career PGA Tour starts, was 16 under through 35 holes, with the second round to be completed Saturday morning.
Kim birdied eight of his first 14 holes without a bogey to race past first-round leader Steve Wheatcroft, who shot 68. Wheatcroft was 12 under with David Hearn (64) and Johnson Wagner (66).
Francesco Molinari, who won the Quicken Loans National two weeks ago, was 11 under with Matt Jones and Bronson Burgoon, who made two eagles and was 8 under for the round with three holes to play.
LPGA: Brooke Henderson shot a bogey-free 5-under 66 to move into a tie for the lead after two rounds at the Marathon Classic in Sylvania, Ohio.
Henderson, a 20-year-old Canadian, and Caroline Hedwall of Sweden were at 9-under 133 through 36 holes. Thidapa Suwannapura was one shot back.
Henderson and Hedwall each birdied the final two holes, which are par 5s.
Hedwall, 29, is looking for her first LPGA Tour win. Henderson won earlier this season in Hawaii, the sixth of her career.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Robert Rock, ranked No. 244, set the record for the lowest 36-hole total since the Scottish Open was launched in 1972, adding a 7-under 63 in the second round to his 64 on Day 1 at Gullane, Scotland.
Not only did it give the English golfer a two-shot lead at 13-under 127, it gave him a great chance of earning one of the final qualification spots for the British Open.
On a day when players shot low scores because of a lack of wind, the course record was broken twice – by Connor Syme of Scotland (62), then Hideto Tanihara of Japan (61).
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