GOLF: Landry slips to 11th-place tie with Woods
Published 7:03 pm Friday, June 29, 2018
- Andrew Landry, originally of Groves, chips out of trouble and onto the 10th green during the second round at the Quicken Loans National at the Tournament Players Club in Potomac, Maryland. (John Middlebrook/Cal Sport Media via AP Images)
One bad shot that led to a double bogey on a par 5, combined with a frustrating day on the greens, turned Andrew Landry from frontrunner to chaser Friday in the second round of the Quicken Loans National.
Landry followed an opening 63 with a two-over-par 72 at the TPC Potomac in Maryland, mainly because he needed 34 putts after hitting 15 of 18 greens. His iron play was so sharp he had 12 birdie putts inside 24 feet and eight within 15 feet.
The only two that fell were from 6 feet on the par 5, second and from 7 feet on the par 3, 17th. When that one dropped, the Groves native lifted his arms above his head and looked to the heavens in seeming disbelief.
With a 135 total at the 36-hole mark, Landry was tied for 11th. He’s four shots behind a trio of players at minus 9 and tied with tourney host Tiger Woods. The other big name in the field, Rickie Fowler, is at 136.
Beau Hossler, Ryan Armour and Brian Gay are tied for the lead at 131.
Other than his putting woes, the only thing Landry did wrong Friday was hit his second shot into a hazard on the par 5, 10th. Forced to take his drop some 180 yards away, Landry pulled his fourth into heavy rough left of the green, wedged to 14 feet and missed the bogey putt.
Landry wasn’t the only Port Neches-Groves ex to make it to the weekend.
Chris Stroud backed up a 71 with a 69 and is tied for 57th. Stroud could have gone lower, but offset five birdies with four bogeys.
For Landry, his woes on the greens leaped off the stat sheet. He’s sixth in the field in strokes gained tee to green but 74th in both putts per greens hit in regulation and strokes gained putting.
Early on, it looked like he would take up where he left off Thursday. After missing from 14 feet for birdie on the first hole, he wedged to 6 feet and made birdie at two. Then the flat stick went stone cold.
After two-putting from 40 feet at 3, he three putted from 11 feet at four.
Landry finished the front by missing birdies from 22 feet, 20, 23, 14 and 22.
Among the missed birdies on the back were putts from 15, 12, 16 and 12 feet.
TV coverage begins Saturday at noon on the Golf Channel, then switches to CBS (KFDM-6) at 2 p.m.
