Stanley leads at Torrey Pines; Kokrak misses cut

Associated Press

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The tougher South Course at Torrey Pines suited Kyle Stanley just fine Friday in the Farmers Insurance Open.

Stanley overcame a double bogey early in his round by running off four birdies on the front nine for a 4-under 68, giving him a one-shot lead over Brandt Snedeker going into the weekend.

Warren’s Jason Kokrak shot a 1-over 73 on Friday, making him 3-over for the tournament — five shots off the cut.

Snedeker, who first gained notoriety as a rookie at Torrey Pines when he shot 61 on the North Course, had a 64 on the North to make a swift climb up the leaderboard. He is coming off hip surgery at the end of last year and made his season debut at the Humana Challenge last week by getting into the hunt. He tied for eighth, and here he is again.

“I’m certainly surprised that I played this well this fast,” Snedeker said. “Normally, it takes me a while to get the rust off. But my practice at home went really, really well. I was actually chomping at the bit to get out here because I knew I was playing well.

“Hopefully, that can happen through the weekend.”

Stanley, long off the tee and as polished as any of the PGA Tour rookies who won last year, was at 14-under 130.

A tournament already missing Tiger Woods will have to do without hometown star Phil Mickelson on the weekend. He shot himself out of the tournament with a 77 on the South in the opening round, and didn’t make nearly enough birdies on the North to make the cut. Mickelson had to settle for a 68, missing the cut for the first time in 10 years at Torrey Pines.

“We’re going to have perfect weather out here at Torrey, and I’d love to be playing,” Mickelson said.

Sang-Moon Bae, a PGA Tour rookie who is No. 34 in the world, had a 67 to match the best score on the South for the second round. That put him two shots behind at 12-under 132, along with Martin Flores, who also had a 67 on the South.

Hunter Mahan shot 65 on the North, while FedEx Cup champion Bill Haas had a 71 on the South. They were three shots behind.

The cut came at 2-under 142, and there will be another cut Saturday because more than 78 players are still around. That group includes Geoff Ogilvy, who birdied his last hole on the North for a 70, and Ernie Els, who was at 3-under 141.