Steve Alker Photo: ©Icon Sportswire
New Zealand golfer Steven Alker shot the round of the day to jump into the lead halfway through the latest Champions Tour seniors tournament in Akron, Ohio.
Alker's five-under-par 65 put him at seven-under 133 through two rounds of the Kaulig Companies Championship at Firestone Country Club, one shot above defending champion Steve Stricker (68). Kenny Perry (69) and Sweden's Robert Karlsson (66) were tied for third at four-under.
Alker posted his low number in spite of a double bogey he carded at the par-four fourth hole.
That misstep came amid a stretch of four birdies in six holes on the front nine; he then added three birdies on the back.
"I felt it early on," Alker said.
"I was in the groove hitting my irons well, making a few putts. Very sloppy double on four was it, I think, but eliminated that pretty quickly, made a couple of birdies coming back on the back nine."
Then, Alker said, he "got a bit loose" with his driver on the back nine.
"I think just one shot at a time, the old adage," he said.
"Just stick with it, keep at it. Then if you miss it in the right place around here, you're OK. The right side of the fairway or the right part of the green, you can manage yourself around."
Alker, 52, won the season-long Charles Schwab Cup in 2022 and has been one of the tour's best players since he joined in late 2021.
So far, he has one senior major title on his resume among eight tour wins.
Stricker, a co-leader after the first round, opened his day strong with birdies at Nos. 10 and 11. Then he went quiet, managing mostly pars the rest of the day with one bogey and one more birdie.
Stricker also won this major in 2021 and was the runner-up in 2022. The 57-year-old has yet to win on the PGA Tour Champions this year but has 17 titles to his name, including seven majors.
- Reuters