Fast start, strong finish spurs Slocum

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Heath Slocum fired a late 66 on Friday to move one shot behind Lee Westwood.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Heath Slocum didn't waste much time setting the tone for the day.

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Slocum started on the back nine of the Stadium Course and opened with three straight birdies. And when he coaxed in a 24-footer for birdie at No. 9 to end the day's proceedings, Slocum was 11 under and tied for second at the midway point of THE PLAYERS Championship.

The soft-spoken Floridian fired a bogey-free 66 in Friday's hot, breezy second round which left him one stroke behind Lee Westwood. He's tied with Ryuji Imada and Francesco Molinari with a one-stroke cushion on Lucas Glover.

"(It was a) quick start off to the day," Slocum acknowledged. "Birdies on 10, 11, and 12 kind of just jump-started the whole day. ... I was very, obviously, very pleased with the way I played today.

"Under a little tougher conditions, and I look forward to the challenge of the next two days."

Slocum got things rolling, literally, with an 8-foot birdie putt at the 10th hole. He got up-and-down from the long greenside bunker at the par-5 11th and added another 8-footer at the next.

He made three more birdies on the front nine -- two-putting from 27 feet at the second hole and adding a 12-footer at No. 6. When he made the putt at the par-5 ninth, it marked the second straight day that Slocum had birdied Nos. 9-12.

"(I made) a great up and down on 8 to save par, and then making that birdie on 9 really capped off the day," Slocum said.

Slocum, who picked up his third PGA TOUR victory last year at The Barclays, has been playing well all season -- but he's been one round away from a really good finish.

He ranks first on TOUR in driving accuracy and 17th in greens in regulation. So it's no wonder that he's among the leaders in THE PLAYERS, although he's never finished higher than 44th at TPC Sawgrass.

As well as he's played tee-to-green this year, Slocum's putting has been a bit scratchy -- he ranks 145th in putts per round and 119th in putting average. Not this week, though. He's tied for first in putting with 52 total including just 25 on Friday.

"I've felt good in my game for a while now," Slocum said. "It's just kind of putting four rounds together and finishing a golf tournament. That's my job over the next two days, like I said, just to stay focused, stay calm and just play my golf game the way I'm supposed to play it and hole some putts."

Prior to this week, Slocum had never shot lower than 69 on the Stadium Course, which he'd done three times in 24 rounds. Those were his only sub-70 rounds before his rounds of 67-66 this week put him among the leaders.

"Obviously, I'm up near the top," Slocum said. "Any time you're in that kind of position two days to go, you've got to feel good about it. I feel good with my game right now. It's just a matter of, I want to say, continuing to do what I've been doing.

"That is the mantra for the whole week."

And why not? It's certainly been working so far.