Walzel's surge has him 1 back



Recent surgeries have limited his participation on tour.
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Bobby Walzel was as surprised as anyone about where he stood after two rounds of the Allianz Championship.
Walzel, playing in a tournament for the first time since October, shot a 5-under 66 Saturday to pull within one shot of the lead.
First-round leader D.A. Weibring stayed on top with a 68 that left him 9 under in the Champions Tour event.
"I guess we're venturing into some uncharted waters here," said Walzel, who had prostate cancer surgery two years ago and also has undergone two recent knee operations. "My play the last year or two has not been that stellar."
Wet course
It certainly was Saturday on a Glen Oaks course dampened by half an inch of rain overnight. He played bogey-free golf, knocked in a 25-putt on No. 12 for one of his five birdies and has hit 26 of 28 fairways in the first two rounds.
"I felt real comfortable with the driver," said Walzel, who worked in real estate and the family jewelry business before joining the Champions Tour in 2000. "If I had a strength, it's probably driving the ball."
Three Toms -- Jenkins, Watson and Kite -- were tied for third at 5 under.
Jenkins moved into contention with a 67 that included four birdies in a stretch of five holes on the back nine. Watson had a 68 and Kite a 69 filled with narrow misses.
Weibring, looking for his first victory of the year, avoided the big mistakes that would have allowed a challenger to overtake. He has only one bogey in 36 holes and had one spectacular shot Saturday.
On the par 3 second hole, Weibring hit a 4-iron to the front of the green, about 60 feet from the hole. He gave his putt a good rap, the ball hit the cup, bounced up and dropped in for a birdie.
"If it hadn't hit the hole, it would have gone by 10 or 12 feet," Weibring said.
Weibring's lone bogey came on No. 4, when he flew his second shot past the green.
He got that back with a 12-footer for birdie on 6, birdied No. 9 to go to 8 under and got his final birdie when he hit an 8-iron from the rough to 2 feet and made the putt.
Jenkins was just 1 under through 10 holes Saturday, then got hot with birdies on 11, 12, 13 and 15.
"You've got to have patience," said Jenkins, who won the Blue Angels Classic last month. "You never know when these little streaks might happen."
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