Billy Andrade holed a 20-foot birdie putt on the final hole to cap a 7-under-par 65 and tie Fred Funk for the lead after two rounds in the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic at Fallen Oak Golf Club in Biloxi, Miss.
The 50-year-old Andrade, who is playing in only his fourth event on the Champions Tour, recorded nine birdies in his round, including three in a row through the ninth hole and another three straight through No. 13.
“I have no idea what it is about Mississippi,” said Andrade, who last year finished fifth in the Sanderson Farms Classic in Madison, Miss., on the PGA Tour, on which he claimed four victories, the last in 2000. “But right now, I absolutely love it.
“It was kind of a swirly, windy day. We didn’t know if the wind was helping us or hurting us on some holes. But I got off to a nice start with a birdie on the first hole and then got into a nice rhythm.”
Funk, who has won eight times on the Champions Tour to match the number of titles he had on the PGA Tour, birdied the first two holes to jump-start his bogey-free 67.
First-round leader Fred Couples made only two birdies, both on the front nine, in a 71 and was one stroke back in a tie for third with Jay Haas and Jeff Maggert, who both posted 69s.
Mark O’Meara, of Mission Viejo and Long Beach State, carded a 68 and was another stroke behind in a tie for sixth with Duffy Waldorf, of Northridge and UCLA, who had a second straight 69, and Bill Glasson, who came in at 67.
