| Braselton,
Georgia. 6th November 1998
- He was a no-name until this week. No more. Suddenly, Edward Fryatt is
the center of attention. The
27-year-old Fryatt, who had a dozen people -- mostly friends and family -- following
him today, shot a second consecutive 5-under-par 67 for a 134 total after the
second round of the Sarazen World Open. He
had a two-stroke lead over first-round leader Bob Tway, who shot a 70. Another
stroke back was Ricardo Gonzalez of Argentina and Scotland's Andrew Coltart. Both
had 68s. At
140 was a group that included PGA players Stewart Cink and Bob Friend, Peter O'Malley
of Australia, Greg Turner of New Zealand and two-time Masters champion Bernard
Langer of Germany. Cink had a 68, Friend a 66, O'Malley a 67 and Turner and Langer
each had 72s. John
Huston and Craig Stadler led a large group at 141. Both shot 71s. "Sure,
it's a nice surprise, but it's not shocking. Golf is still golf and if you're
playing good, it doesn't matter who you're playing against," Fryatt said
of his bid for the $360,000 first prize in the $2 million tournament sponsored
by Subaru. Pressure?
"None.
The thing about it is nobody knows who I am," Fryatt said following his round
over the par-72 Legends course at Chateau Elan in the northeast Atlanta suburb.
"You guys
didn't know who I was until this week. If there's any pressure, it's on the (PGA)
tour guys to do well," said Fryatt, who has had some succcess in three years
on the Asian tour, winning five times. There,
too, he was not a household name. "My
wife is my only following in Asia," Fryatt said. The
weekend, however, will find Fryatt in the spotlight with a large gallery following
his every move. "I
don't think it will affect me. I'm just going to enjoy myself," he said.
Defending champion
Mark Calcavecchia shot a 74 and was far back at 146, as was Payne Stewart after
a 75. Two-time
winner Frank Nobilo (1995-96) barely made the cut of 148. He shot a 72 after an
opening-round 76 in this event that brings together the past two champions from
open tourneys around the world as well as several Sarazen selections. Failing
to make the cut was Tom Kite, who had a 75 for 149. Fryatt,
a graduate of UNLV who was born in England before moving to Las Vegas 22 years
ago with his family, has won twice this year on the Asian tour -- the China Open
and the Malaysian Open. In three years in Asia, he has won about $500,000. One
of the early starters (7:54 a.m.), he ignored the chilly temperatures that dipped
into the high 30s before warming into the low 50s. He got four birdies in his
first five holes -- two on 40-foot putts -- then made only one more birdie, another
40-footer on No. 14, without a bogey the rest of the way. "It's
kind of nice to shoot two 67s and not really have hit it great," Fryatt said.
"I've been fortunate that the putting has been really hot." His
goal, however, is to make it onto the PGA Tour, where he has failed in four attempts
at qualifying school. He did make it to the Nike tour in 1995, but made only nine
cuts and earned $23,347. He'll
get his fifth chance Nov. 17-23 at PGA West in Palm Springs, Calif., in the final
round of the PGA Qualifying school. He made it through the second round last week
in Florence, S.C., to at least qualify for the Nike tour next season. "For
me, pressure was last week at tour school," Fryatt said. "Now I put
myself in a situation where I have nothing to lose. At worse, I'll play the Nike
tour." Divots:
Scott Hoch, 17th on the money list with $1.237 million this year, withdrew after
shooting a 74 in the opening round Thursday. | 
