By ,
Published January 13, 2015
Gene Sauers fired a 6-under 66 on Saturday to grab a 2-stroke lead after two rounds of the Insperity Championship.
Sauers, who will go for his first tour win on Sunday, finished 36 holes at 8- under-par 136. His 66 was the low round of the week.
First-round leader Mike Goodes posted his second straight 3-under 69 and is alone in second place at minus-6. Goodes picked up his lone tour win at the 2009 Allianz Championship.
Loren Roberts also shot a 69 in round two to move into third place at 3-under 141 on the Tournament Course at The Woodlands Country Club.
Peter Senior (70) and Esteban Toledo (71) are the final players in red figures at minus-1.
Goodes was one clear to start the round, but Sauers got off to a fast start with birdies on one and two to take the lead at minus-4. Goodes responded with a birdie at the third.
Both players birdied the sixth to move to 5-under. Goodes made it two in a row as he also birdied the 17th.
Sauers answered with a birdie on the par-3 eighth from 15 feet out, but he gave that stroke right back as he bogeyed the ninth after a poor bunker shot. Around the turn, Goodes stumbled to a bogey on No. 11 to slide back to minus-5.
After four pars in a row, Sauers caught fire. He converted back-to-back birdie chances at 14 and 15 to jump to 7-under. Sauers chipped in for birdie on the 17th to get to 8-under.
"Like I say, I didn't think it was going to really blow this much today. I was shocked when I got out there right before my tee time, and man, wind was picking up again. It did play tough at times," stated Sauers. "I just told myself to stay within myself and hit solid shots and things will work out and luckily they did. The chip on 17, I got that back today since I made double- bogey yesterday. Other than that, I hit the ball solid."
Goodes parred four in a row after his bogey at the 11th. He carded a birdie on the par-3 16th, then closed with a pair of pars.
"It's still tough out there. I mean, the greens are fast and still got a lot of firmness and there's enough wind. And it's not like it's calm out there. There's plenty of spots where the wind beats you up," Goodes said. "I played great the front. It wasn't like I played bad the back. I just got really tentative on some putts."
NOTES: Sauers is winless on the Champions Tour, while Goodes has one tour win ... After only seven players broke par in round one, 18 players carded scores in red figures in the second round ... The five players that are under par after 36 holes are the fewest under par in a non-major on the Champions Tour after the first two rounds since there were only three in red figures after two days of the 2003 Verizon Classic ... Rocco Mediate withdrew after the second round.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/sauers-2-ahead-of-goodes-in-texas