Talented Jimmy Walker leads Wyndham
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2012 Wyndham Championship | Round Two | 18 Aug 2012
Jimmy Walker leads the Wyndham Championship at the halfway mark at the Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, an eight under par round of 62 moving the 33 year old into a one shot lead over the defending champion Webb Simpson with another shot back to Tim Clark, Sergio Garcia, Harris English and another former champion in Carl Pettersson.
Walker has been seen as a significant talent since winning twice and finishing runner-up on two other occasions on the then Nationwide Tour in 2004. He led the money list that year but was unable to play a full PGA Tour schedule in 2005 due to an early season neck injury and then in 2006 lost his status.
Back on the Nationwide Tour in 2007 he won again and has played the PGA Tour since.
Walker has struggled in recent months on the PGA Tour after what had been a reasonable start to the season. A third round of 67 at last week’s PGA Championship had him in the mix before a final round of 73 saw him finish 21st.
“I don’t know I did this last year and I did it last year, same kind of start, said Walker. "I felt like I was playing pretty steady, like I was making a lot of cuts and nothing — just kind of hanging in there.
“I tore my meniscus in Dallas and I dealt with that for about three weeks, four weeks trying to kind of get over that and I couldn’t really get the swelling to go away. I ended up having a cortisone shot right before — when was that — I don’t remember.
“Right after Memorial, I think, something like that. We didn’t go at the U.S. Open. I got a cortisone injection that week. It took all the swelling out and my knee feels a hundred percent again. Still torn but I don’t have the swelling.
Simpson birdied four of his last five holes on day two to move within one and is well placed to defend the title he won last year. He has played sparingly since his US Open victory due to the arrival of his second child but he appears close to his best again.
Carl Pettersson picked up where he left off last week when 3rd at the PGA Championship, the first round leader adding an eagle at the 15th in his round today after struggling early to get within striking distance.
The leading Australian is Rod Pampling who by making the cut has virtually assured a place in the first of the FedEx Playoff events next week. He has done a lot more than that as the Queenslander is in a share of 14th position after his second round of 66.
Stuart Appleby (55th) and Nick O’Hern (65th) are the only other Australians to make the cut.
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