COURSE REVIEWS

Second-Round Coverage:
Toshiba Senior Classic

Doyle Fights His Way
To Top Of Leaderboard At Toshiba

By Bob Buttitta,
GolfCalifornia.com Course Reviewer

NEWPORT BEACH - There were times during Saturday's second round of the Toshiba Senior Classic when Allen Doyle looked both invincible and inept. Lucky for Doyle, the good shots outnumbered the bad.

Doyle survived an up-and-down round that included eight birdies and four bogeys, giving him a two-day total of 6-under par 136, good enough for a one-stroke lead over Howard Twitty and Jim Thorpe heading into Sunday's final round.

The skies opened up during Saturday's second round, making conditions difficult for all the players. With predictions calling for more of the same for the final round, Doyle said he is happy to be in the lead.

"Conditions got pretty lousy during the downpour," Doyle said. "It got cold and my hands got cool. It's one of those things you've got to fight through."

Doyle started like a house on fire, making birdies on three of the first four holes. The birdie streak put Doyle in a tie for the lead, but that didn't last long. He gave all three strokes back with bogeys at 5, 6, and 8, making the turn at 2-under par, just like he started the round.

Luckily for Doyle, no one else on the course was doing much either, so as he made the turn he looked at the scoreboard and realized he was still very much in the running.

• Preview: Toshiba Senior Classic • First Round: Toshiba Senior Classic • Past GolfCalifornia.com course reviews

"It's one of those days when the scoreboard was your friend if you weren't too far from par," Doyle said. "I knew if I could make a birdie or two I would be in it."

He made a bogey at 10, but was 4-under over the final eight holes, including birdies at 17 and 18. Doyle said knowing the weather predictions are bad for Sunday, he wanted to try and post as low a score as possible.

"I was conscious of the weather for tomorrow when I got to 18," Doyle said. "I was thinking if I got to 6-under, you never know what might happen."

Twitty, who trailed by one shot after the first round was in front most of the day. He too said the conditions made it difficult.

"I survived today, that's the best way to describe it," Twitty said. "It was awful. It was difficult to stay loose. It was real tough to get the right club and it was hard to get the right distance."

Twitty has the added problem that he can't wear regular golf shoes. Having suffered with foot problems all his life, he's had three operations on his feet and as a result he wears sandals with cleats on them when he plays.

When asked if the cold bothered his feet Twitty said he had no idea because he could not feel his feet due to the cold.

"I started wearing the sandals last year," Twitty said. "If I was wearing golf shoes I wouldn't be able to walk 18 holes. I wear ski socks that are supposedly all weather but they're still wet."

Twitty just missed a 15-foot birdie putt on 18 that would have given him a share of the lead. "I hit a good putt but with the greens soft from the rain it's hard to keep the ball on line," Twitty said. "There's a lot of guys bunched at the top of the leaderboard so we'll see what happens tomorrow."

Archer Wins Super Senior Title

George Archer sank a 25-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole to defeat Lee Trevino in the second installment of the Georgia-Pacific Super Seniors Event. The "tournament within a tournament" is open to Senior PGA players over 60. At 18 selected tournaments throughout the Senior PGA season, qualifying players compete for an additional purse with the player posting the lowest two-day total winning.

Archer and Trevino each birdied the first hole in the overtime. On the next hole, the par 3, 185-yard 17th, Archer took his 4-iron and knocked his shot 25-feet from pin. After Trevino missed a slightly longer putt, Archer stepped up and calmly drained the birdie putt.

"This is my first Super Seniors title," Archer said. "I was second to Mike Hill at the last one in Miami. I was cold out there today and I've been sick. I'm looking forward to going to Mexico (the tour's next stop) and getting well."

Archer appeared on his way to an easy victory until taking a double-bogey on 17 during his regular round. Because of bad weather, he left his jacket on and his 4-iron came up short, landing on the bank and rolling back into the water hazard.

Officials made him drop two balls, both of which ended up in the water, before allowing him to place the ball for his third shot.

"I don't know why they make you drop when they know everything on the bank is going in the water," Archer joked. "I lost two good balls. I'm going to have to start carrying range balls that I can drop in those instances."

Archer won $34,000 for winning the event.