Kyle Reifers
Kyle Reifers could barely walk on Monday but four days later finds himself atop the leaderboard at the Panama CLARO Championship, the first stop on the 2011 Nationwide Tour schedule. Reifers has posted scores of 65-66 during the first two weather-delayed rounds at the Panama Golf Club and his 9-under 131 total is two strokes better than South Carolina's Kyle Thompson, who carded a 5-under 65 Friday morning.
Australians Mathew Goggin (66), Gavin Coles (70) and Alistair Presnell (65) share third place at 6-under 134. Major Manning (67) of Florida is four strokes off the pace.
A clear picture of the leaderboard won't come until around noon Saturday when the second round is completed. Area storms produced proximity lightning and forced officials to suspend play for 2 hours, 45 minutes on Friday afternoon, this on the heels of a two-hour delay Thursday that kept 51 players from finishing round one. The net result is that 66 players, will have to return in the morning, some with as many as 17 holes to go.
First-round co-leader Rich Barcelo is at 7-under par through 3 holes. Erik Compton, who shot 6-under 64 to share the first round lead with Barcelo and Coles, is 5-under through 3 holes. Also at 5 under are Colombia native Camilo Benedetti and Roberto Castro.
Reifers tweaked his back on Monday and wasn't even sure he'd make the trip from Atlanta to Panama.
"I was working out before I was going to catch a flight and felt something snap," he said. "I couldn't get up and thought I better take it easy."
Reifers, 27, got some treatment and arrived in Central America Wednesday night ready to try and right the wrong of the 2010 season which saw him make only nine cuts in 26 starts.
"I felt like at the end of last year I started making strides," said the Wake Forest grad who finished T2 in his final start, the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open. "It was a little frustrating to have that much time off but I tried to stay positive and just get back to playing instead of putting so much pressure on myself."
To gain some confidence, Reifers has gone back to an older driver and set of irons. He also ventured west in January, attempting to Monday qualify for a trio of PGA TOUR events.
"It was good to see where I stood," he said. "Last week I played a tournament in Hilton Head that was four rounds. That was nice to get back into the competitive mode and get my walking legs, too. We've had so much time off and it's so hot here, I think that was a big help."
So is making a lot of birdies, which he has done. He has 12 birdies thus far to lead the tournament, including a stretch of four straight in both the first and second rounds.
"I grinded it out a little more today. I had some putts I thought I could have made and some putts that I did make, so it all evened out," he said. "I hit it well and made some putts and the next thing you know you birdie four, five in a row."
