Michigan Open Results, Round 2

Ryan Brehm (pictured above) and Willie Mack III maintained their share of the lead after round 2 of the 2014 Michigan Open at Prestwick Village Golf Club.

Brehm and Mack shot 5-under 67s to finish at -12 through 36 holes Tuesday. That was good enough for a four shot lead on the next five golfers.

The full press release is below:

Brehm, Mack III Comfortable Leading Michigan Open Championship

HIGHLAND – Ryan Brehm and Willie Mack III shared the lead at the halfway point of the 97th Michigan Open Championship presented by LaFontaine Cadillac at Prestwick Village Golf Club.

It was good news for Mack and Brehm, but maybe bad news for everybody else in the field.

Brehm, the PGA Tour Canada golfer and former Michigan State standout took early leads and kept them in his two previous Michigan Open wins in 2009 and ‘10.

And Mack, a mini-tour golfer with six wins in three years around the country, simply thinks the lead is always the best place to be.

“Leading means you’re doing something right,” he said.

Brehm, 28, a Mount Pleasant native and Grand Rapids resident, and Mack, 25 and a Grand Blanc resident, each shot a 5-under-par 67 to check in at 12-under-par 132 through 36 holes Tuesday.

They have four-shot leads on five golfers including six-time champion Scott Hebert of Grand Traverse Resort and Spa, who shot 69, and Petoskey’s Joey Garber, who shared the first round lead with Brehm and Mack, and shot 71 for 132.

Andy Ruthkoski, the 2007 Michigan Open champion and a mini-tour player from Muskegon, and Eric Lilleboe, a mini-tour pro from Okemos, each shot 65, the low rounds of the day, to join the crowd four shots off the lead.

Also there: University of North Carolina golfer Henry Do of Canton, who shot 69.

Mack said the afternoon greens Tuesday were not as easy to manage as they were on Monday in the morning.

“I still managed to make a few putts, and being in the lead for two days is great,” he said. “I just have to keep plugging along and keep doing what I’ve been doing.”

Mack said he left a few shots out on the course, especially when he made bogey on the par 4 fifth hole by flying his sand wedge shot over the green.

“Maybe lost concentration there from getting a little tired,” he said. “You miss the greens here and the rough can be tricky.”

Brehm, who has a distance advantage on most of the field, was disappointed he was just 1-under-par on the par 5 holes after being 4-under in the first round. He did make the best of an out-of-bounds tee shot on the par 5 No. 15 hole though. After a second tee shot, he hit a 7-iron to four-feet and made the putt to save a par.

“Eagle to make par, which was good I guess, but I told Matt Thompson I wasn’t sure how to feel about that,” he said. “The first tee shot must have hit hard and bounced directly right. I didn’t think there was any way it would be out.”

Garber had similar issues on the par 5 ninth hole, only didn’t come out of it as well. He lost a ball when his 3-wood tee shot caught the top of a pine tree and bounced away. He played a second ball and three-putted for a triple-bogey to fall from a tie for the lead at the time.

“Overall I’m pretty happy with the way I battled back after that and posted an under-par score,” he said. “There are some hard holes out here. There are a lot of birdies being made, but a lot can happen. I’m looking forward to making more birdies and staying in touch with the lead.”

Hebert birdied two of the last three holes in his round, which he thought could have been even better.

“I just need the putts to fall,” he said. “I’m hitting it good enough and getting the chances. Eventually they will start falling. With 36 holes to go a lot things can happen. I’m right where I need to be though. Let’s see what happens.”

Defending champion Tom Werkmeister of Kentwood rallied with a 68, and was in the group at 138.

Also six shots back was Kyle Rodes, an Eastern Michigan University golfer from Plymouth who fired a 66 and Dearborn Heights mini-tour golfer Joe Juszczyk, who shot 68.

Gaylord amateur Alexander Dombrowski, who golfs for Princeton University, was at 137 after a 69.

The 36-hole cut fell at 3-over-par 147. The Michigan PGA announced the final purse at $57,500 for the 72-hole state championship that continues through Thursday.

Visit http://www.michiganpgagolf.com for more information and third round pairings.