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ESPN NETWORK:
ESPN.COM | NFL.COM | NBA.COM | NASCAR ONLINE | ABCSPORTS | FANTASY | THE STORE | INSIDER
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Stewart back on top at Harbour Town Associated Press April 16 4:21pm ET | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. -- Payne Stewart honed in again on a course he's learned to love, shooting a 64 Friday for the second-lead in the MCI Classic. Stewart's 10-under 132 left him a stroke ahead of John Cook and two in front of Per-Ulrik Johansson. Chris Perry and John Hutson were next at 7-under.
Stewart came to Harbour Town Golf Links as a 26-year-old in 1983 and was appalled at the tight fairways, uneven turf and subpar greens. "I couldn't believe that we were playing a PGA Tour event on a golf course in that kind of shape," Stewart said. He vowed not to come back -- and didn't until 1989 to prep for that season's Nabisco Tour Championships, also at Harbour Town. "I decided I needed to figure out how to play the golf course and ended up winning that week," he said. "I have been coming back ever since." Stewart usually pops some powerful numbers on the leaderboard. Besides winning in both 1989 and 1990, he had a 65 in 1993, a 66 in 1995 and a 64 last year. "There is a lot of great holes on this golf course where length isn't demanded," Stewart said. "You've got to think your way around this golf course a lot." And Stewart, who ranks 93rd in driving distance this year, counts on his mind to succeed more and more. He had eight birdies, most because he accurately placed balls in perfect positions to avoid the layout's, swirling wind, gaping bunkers and craggy overhanging live oaks. The one time he misfired, off the 13th tee, Stewart got his only bogey. He quickly recovered with a birdie on the par-3 14th, blasting a pitching wedge within a foot. Cook has struggled this season, missing the cut four times in 10 tournaments. But a session with friend and mentor Ken Venturi at Hilton Head's Wexford Plantation on Tuesday made Cook feel talented again. He followed his 66 Thursday with a 67, "a solid smart round with another solid smart round. I haven't done that this year," said Cook, who's 105th on the money list. Cook could have tied Stewart at 10-under, but hung an eagle putt on the lip at the par-5 fifth hole. "I don't know, someone has to explain to me how a ball can be half over the hole and not go in," he said. He parred out for his first consecutive sub-70 rounds since the season-opening Mercedes Championship. Johansson got within a stroke of Stewart with a birdie on No. 14. But his wayward tee shot on the par-3 17th led to bogey and a 68. First-round co-leader Steve Flesch shot a 71 and was tied with Fred Funk and Scott Hoch at 6-under par. Stewart tries to spread his Harbour Town affection to golf's next generation, which often values booming drives over the subtle irons that Harbour Town rewards. On the putting green, Stewart asked Tiger Woods, here for the first time, about the layout. "He said, `This is a cute little golf course,' " Stewart said, smiling. To Stewart, it's more than cute, it's what his career is about. "If you look and see who has won golf tournaments here," he said, "you will understand that it takes some talent to get the job done."
Divots
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