Argentine insists he's 'a good 40'
Updated: July 10, 2004, 5:50 PM ET
Associated Press
SILVIS, Ill. -- Jose Coceres birdied the 17th hole for a 3-under 68 Saturday and one-stroke lead after two rounds of the rain-delayed John Deere Classic.
Coceres moved to 12-under 130, one shot ahead of Greg Chalmers (67), heading into the third round later Saturday.
About half the field was forced to complete the second round Saturday, one day after play was delayed for three hours because of rain and later suspended because of lightning.
Vaughn Taylor (69) was two shots back at 10-under 132, and Mark Hensby shot a second-round 65 to move into fourth at 9 under.
Ten players were tied for fifth at 7 under.
Derailed by a broken arm and bad play since winning twice in 2001, Coceres has held the lead after both rounds at the TPC at Deere Run. It's the first time he has had the lead this late in a tournament since winning the National Car Rental Classic in 2001. He also won the Worldcom Classic that year.
"The most important thing right now is that in my mind, I'm doing very well," the 40-year-old Argentine player said through a translator. "I really want to have a good tournament. I'm ready to have a good tournament."
Coceres was 2 under through 11 holes in the second round and 11 under overall when play was suspended.
Coceres said the extra holes shouldn't be a problem.
"I'm in good shape," he said. "I'm 40, but I'm a good 40."
Coceres, a former caddie who taught himself to play with clubs fashioned from branches, was the first-round leader after a career-best 62.
He got off to a good start Friday with birdies on two his first four holes, and reached 2 under with a birdie on No. 10 before bogeying the 11th.
Taylor moved into a tie for the lead with a birdie on 10, but three-putted the next hole to fall a shot back. A double-bogey dropped Taylor to 7 under, but he birdied three of the next six holes to get within a stroke of Coceres.
Taylor, a 28-year-old PGA Tour rookie who played on the Nationwide Tour last year, tied for fifth in the St. Jude Classic in late May. He's put himself in contention again for his first PGA Tour victory.
"Hopefully I'll be more relaxed. I think more and more, (when) I'm in that position I'll get used to it," he said.
Vijay Singh, last year's champion, shot a 67 to reach 6 under.
He bogeyed two of the final three holes and had another bogey on the par-3 12th. On the 18th, Singh hit his drive within 100 yards of the hole and had a birdie opportunity from 20 feet.
Instead, he three-putted. After tapping in for bogey, a disgusted Singh pulled the ball out of the hole and tossed it into a pond directly behind him before walking off the course.
"It was a little disappointing. I had a chance to shoot a really low number," Singh said. "A bad way to finish."
Singh leads the tour with three victories this year and surprised some by returning to the Deere Classic a week before the British Open. With more rain expected, the tournament could be extended into Monday -- as it was last year.
"We'll do everything in our power to finish 72 holes by Sunday," PGA Tour rules official Jamie Conkling said. "If it has to go to Monday, it has to go to Monday."
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