The Starter: Round 2, The Honda Classic

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Mar. 4, 2010

The second round of The Honda Classic is set to begin. Here's a look at Friday's round:

Groups We're Watching

Tee time	Players
7:08 a.m. ET, No. 10		Oliver Wilson, James Driscoll, Charles Howell III Wilson played strong in majors and WGC events last year, but is still aiming for his first pro win after a first-round 66.
7:53 a.m. ET, No. 10		Angel Cabrera, Camilo Villegas, Mike Weir Villegas, perhaps the busiest pro the last couple weeks, is one shot back of the leaders, while Cabrera is tied for 19th.
12:42 p.m. ET, No. 1		Nathan Green, Vijay Singh, Padraig Harrington Green is a co-leader after the first round, and Singh, finally healthy, finished just two shots back.

MORE ROUND 2: Tee times | Inside the field | Inside the courses

EXPERT PREVIEW: PGA TOUR NETWORK on-site correspondent Bob Stevens previews Friday's second round:

Here's a trivia question you can win drinks with at your favorite watering hole. What do Michael Connell and Alex Rocha share as they wake up Friday in the rare air of the top of a PGA TOUR leaderboard?

Both are alums of Mississippi State. Rocha, a Brazilian, was an All-American there early in the decade, but was just about to give up the professional game last summer when Rio de Janeiro was awarded the 2016 Olympics and golf was included as a sport. So juiced by that opportunity, Rocha got a new club deal, a new coach, a new agent and a new attitude. He had to pre-qualify for the Monday qualifier this week and told me that just getting in the field was all he needed to accomplish -- everything else is icing on the cake.

Beware the golfer with nothing to lose? Connell's road to Thursday's 65 was a long one, too. He had to qualify just to get into the first stage of q-school, so he's been fighting for his TOUR life for nearly six months.

Friday's forecast

Partly cloudy
Temp: 65 high/40 low
No precipitation expected. Winds from the NNW at 12 mph.

Watch out for a pair of Brits today after a good night's sleep. Lee Westwood (-1) and Graeme McDowell (-2) were up before dawn to tee it up in the opening round. Both told me they felt they didn't really do anything special on Thursday. Westwood's the highest-ranked golfer in the field (No. 4 in the world) and McDowell can almost call himself a Floridian, he spends so much time in Orlando. Playing together and not teeing off 'till 12:06 p.m. should find them rested, ready and knowing where the leaders already are on the leaderboard.

Winds are expected to be down just a little and the temperatures should be up a little, a delightful combination after a fairly raw, British-spring-type day that McDowell said he felt comfortable playing, even if it was in the low-40s when he teed off Thursday. The direction of the wind might cause more troubles -- it's from the west/northwest, making the par-3s in the Bear Trap play downwind, and those on the front nine going back into the wind.

INSTRUCTOR'S CORNER: Steve Voguit, head instructor at the TOUR Academy at World Golf Village, analyzes the playing conditions this week.

The opening round of the 2010 Honda Classic has come to completion and, as expected, the wind was a factor. Among those affected was defending champion Y.E. Yang, who will have some work ahead of him if he expects to stand atop the winner's podium again. The good news for Yang and others is that the weather is expected to progressively improve each day, with the winds calming and temperatures rising into the 70s. When weather conditions play a role in a round, there is not one more influential than that of the wind. The wind exposes the tiniest of flaws and magnifies it exponentially. With this said, there are still many players with the ability to go low, as displayed with Nathan Green's 5 under round one.

To play on TOUR, a player must have the ability to strike a golf shot well enough to turn heads at the driving range. When a great ball striker hits a shot, you can hear the success in the clean, crisp click. The reason TOUR players are able to create this sound time and again is because of their talent for controlling the club shaft through impact. With an iron, the players are entering the impact zone with the club shaft leaning forward, thus creating a downward force through the ball. Most amateurs return to impact with the shaft leaning backwards, causing both thin and fat shots. Try hitting some small pitch shots with a wedge, with your focus on returning the club shaft with a forward lean at impact, and listen for the success.

The Film Room

	PGA TOUR Today International flags are flying at the 2010 Honda Classic. Casey Black takes a look at the leaderboard heading into the second round. Watch it
	Round 1 highlights Nathan Green and Michael Connell are tied for the lead at 5 under after the first round of the 2010 Honda Classic. Watch it
	Shot of the Day: March 4 Colombian Camilo Villegas goes for the green with a 291-yard approach and taps in for birdie at the finishing hole at PGA National. Watch it