Round 2 Notes – Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial
* Geoff Ogilvy fired a six-under-par 64 to place himself in contention going into the weekend. His 64 was three back of the second-round record here set by Keith Clearwater who shot a nine-under-par 61 in 1993. In relation to par, it was Ogilvy’s best round since a six-under-par 66 in round-three of the 2008 Shell Houston Open, where he ultimately finished T2. * Geoff Ogilvy previously played at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial from 2001 to 2005, with his best finish being a T34 in 2001. Ogilvy fired a third-round 64 in 2005, finishing T38.
* After an opening round five-under-par 65, Phil Mickelson shot a two-under-par 68 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead into the weekend. Mickelson has held the 36-hole lead 26 times in his career since joining the PGA TOUR in 1992. He has gone on to win 15 times.
* In the 61-year history of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, the second-round leader/co-leader has gone on to claim victory 21 times.
* In 2005, Kenny Perry became the most recent 36-hole leader/co-leader to win the Crowne Plaza Invitational.
* Phil Mickelson has previously claimed two victories in the state of Texas. He won the 1996 GTE Byron Nelson Classic and the 2000 MasterCard Colonial at Colonial Country Club.
* Should Phil Mickelson win the 2008 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, it would be the 11th event he has won multiple times.
* Statistically, round-two was not as strong as round one for Phil Mickelson. In round one, Mickelson his 10 of 14 fairways, as opposed to 7 of 14 in round two. In round one, he was 16 for 18 in greens in regulation, but just 10 for 18 Friday.
* A total of 80 professionals made the cut at two-over 142. The record for most players to make the cut at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial was 81 in 1982.
* Interestingly, seven of the top-10 leaders began on the back-nine in round-two. They were: Phil Mickelson, Matt Kuchar, Johnson Wagner, Vaughn Taylor, Kevin Sutherland, Stephen Ames, Mark Brooks.
* First-round leader Johnson Wagner followed an opening-round 63 with a second-round one-over par 71 to trail Phil Mickelson’s lead by a stroke. The last Crowne Plaza Invitational champion to shoot an over-par round and still go on to win that week was Olin Browne, who shot a 73 in round one in 1999.
* Justin Leonard shot a two-over-par 72 to make the cut for the 15th consecutive year at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. Leonard, who made the cut as an amateur in 1993, has never missed the cut at this event (1993, 1995-2008). Gary Player holds the longest consecutive cut streak at this event, reaching the weekend 17 out of 17 times.
* Matt Kuchar birdied his first four holes in round two (10-13) en route to a six-under-par 64. In his only other appearance here (2007), Kuchar finished T36. The 64 matched his low-round of the year. In round-three of the Mayakoba Golf Classic, Kuchar shot a six-under-par 64 to claim T3 honors, his best finish since claiming a T3 at the 2007 AT&T Classic.
* In his fourth Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial start, 2007 Buick Open champion, Brian Bateman, eagled the par-five 11th hole after hitting his second shot from 251 yards to three feet, six inches en route to a five-under-par 65. The best finish of his three previous starts here is a T14 in 2004. Bateman’s best finish on TOUR since winning at Warwick Hills in 2007 is a T20 at the 2008 Masters.
* Brian Gay, who was born in Ft. Worth, is enjoying success in the state of Texas in 2008. Following last month’s T7 at the Byron Nelson Championship, he posted a bogey-free, second-round five-under-par 65 at Colonial Country Club on Friday. Gay, who has played the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial each year since 2000, has missed the cut just once (2007). His best finish at Colonial was a T2 in 2001.
* Corey Pavin, who has played in 24 events at Colonial, two of which he has won (1985, 1996), shot a second-round one-under-par 69 to head into the weekend at 4-under 140, three back of Phil Mickelson’s lead.
* Kenny Perry tops the list of money winners at Colonial with $2,625,589. In this, his 19th start at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, Perry shot a second-round one-under-par 69, meaning he will be around for the weekend to add to that total.
* Dustin Johnson used an eight-iron from 171 yards to ace the par-three 13th hole. It was the 22nd hole-in-one in tournament history.
* At 50 years-old, 1993 champion Fulton Allem shot a one-under-par 69 to finish the second round at one-over for the tournament, thus making the cut for the first time since 2003.
* Bogey-free rounds: Brian Gay, Matt Kuchar, Bart Bryant.
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