By MARK EVERSON
Posted: 5:00 am
June 28, 2008
Impatience compounds itself, just causing more, Loren Roberts says. Remarkably winless in 17 Champions tournaments this year, the Schwab Cup holder opened up yesterday intending to erase that 0-fer tomorrow.
Atop the Commerce Bank championship leaderboard to start today's second round, the Boss of the Moss says he's trying to resist pressing for his eighth career Champions Tour triumph. But he wants it to happen. Badly.
"The whole idea is to get the win. It really is," Roberts said after birdies on three of his last four holes gave him the first-round lead with a 6-under 65 on Eisenhower Red in East Meadow, Long Island.
Roberts stands fourth in this year's senior money leaders on the strength of three seconds, including last week to Jeff Sluman. He finished second to Jay Haas in cash last year, while winning the year's points-based Schwab annuity.
But he hasn't won since October, his second of 2007, and was runner-up to Lonnie Nielsen here last year, after opening with a 7-under 64.
"That's where I haven't had patience. I've been trying to win," Roberts said.
Guess who is the senior's example to emulate.
"Tiger [Woods] has more [patience] than most of us. More than all of us, probably," Roberts said.
Playing it cool yesterday, he was 2-under through 11, just hanging around until erupting in the final four.
"It was the finish," Roberts said. "It turned a so-so round into a really good round. I had really good patience, which I haven't had this year."
Famed for his putting, Roberts rolled in a 42-footer on No. 18 for his sixth birdie of the day. He noted that plenty of big-name golfers are failing to pile up senior victories, the way some once did.
"There are just more good players, who had stayed competitive," Roberts said. "You're talking about guys who have won a lot of majors, and tournaments on the regular tour, like [Nick] Price."
