Compton's chances slipping away, Lee makes big leap

Chris Condon/PGA TOUR

In a tie for 113th, Erik Compton is running out of time at q-school.

WINTER GARDEN, Fla. -- Erik Compton didn't have to say a word for anyone to understand how frustrated he was Saturday. It was written all over his face, and his game.

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That's what q-school can do to a player, even one who's survived two heart transplants.

"I played well all year so it's frustrating that I just don't have it," said Compton, who is 3 over on the week after a 72 Saturday that leaves him in a tie for 113th with just two rounds to play. "Most places I'd already be home, now I have to continue to play and try to figure out how to get the ball in the hole."

If Compton, who made seven starts on the PGA TOUR and two on the Nationwide Tour this season, doesn't figure that out, he could be headed toward conditional status on the Nationwide Tour.

"At his point I just want to get full Nationwide status because if I get a conditional [Nationwide] card, you don't get anything," said Compton, who needs to climb into the group nearest the next 50 after the top 25 on the leaderboard for full Nationwide status. "It's frustrating, man. It's not what I pictured. It's been absolutely horrific."

And that might be an understatement. Three times Compton bladed balls out of the bunker during the fourth round after changing to a wedge with more bounce to account for the fluffy bunkers at Orange County National. The length of the courses hasn't helped, either.

"I feel like I'm hitting the same shot over and over again," Compton said. "I try to hit the tee shot as hard as I can and then hit 5-iron into the green as hard as I can.

"I don't know if it's the pressure from q-school or that it's just been a long ride. I found myself to be more angry on the course than I've been in years. I never get that mad. I'm not myself out there."

On a positive note for Compton, however, is that physically, he's held up very well, which is something he called "shocking." And he hasn't passed out the way he did in his first trip to q-school.

Unfortunately for Compton, however, this might not be his last trip to q-school either.

LEE MAKES BIG LEAP: One good round is sometimes all it takes. Beginning the day in a tie for 61st, Danny Lee climbed all the way to 32nd following a 6-under 65 on the Panther Lake Course.

While Lee couldn't really explain why he was able to turn his week around other than to say that the putts finally started dropping, he did admit a season of learning has helped him this week.

"Every 18 I play I learn something," Lee said. "If you look at [the year] score-wise it was very disappointing. Learning-wise it was very different. I missed shots better. My short game is improving a lot and those changes have made me more positive. Two years back if I was 2 over or 1 over after the first two days I would think this is over. Now I'm trying harder and finding myself up there."

If he can continue that trend, the one-time youngest player ever to win the U.S. Amateur will also find himself with a TOUR card.

TRYON'S STRUGGLES CONTINUE: Ty Tryon's long, strange journey back to the final stage of q-school -- one which has included mini tours and local money games and working at David Leadbetter's Academy -- may not end with the conclusion he wanted, but he's okay with that.

The 26-year-old struggled again on Saturday, shooting a 1-over 73 on the Crooked Cat Course that leaves him 1 over for the week and more importantly in a tie for 92nd.

"I got out of position with a few tee balls today," said Tryon, who bogeyed his first two par-5s of the day, Nos. 14 and 17, after starting on the back nine. "It's alright. I figure I have to shoot two rounds that I wanted to shoot the first four days. I'm still going to try [to get into the top 25]."

Getting there, however, seems unlikely with nine strokes currently separating Tryon from that group. But if Tryon can get into the group of players who get full status on the Nationwide Tour, he'll be okay with that, too. After all, it's better than the alternative.