Sep 17, 2005 By Josh Krysak 4 min read

FARMINGTON – When Chris Smith set out Friday at the 84 Lumber Classic at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa he was simply hoping to protect the 4-under he shot Thursday and capitalize on the long course that plays to his strength. Five hours, five birdies and an eagle mixed in with a bogey later, Smith found himself in the clubhouse, near the top of the leaderboard and all smiles as he described his strong second round.

“I hit the driver really good both days and I made some good putts and hit a lot of greens, so you do those things, you end up playing pretty well,” Smith said.

Smith did just that Friday, hammering tape-measure drives that allowed him to cash in on some of Mystic Rock’s par-5s and finish tied for second at 10-under par.

Smith claimed the third-longest drive of the day, hitting his tee shot on the par-5 eighth over the bunker down the left side of the dogleg left, over a hillock and rolling to a whooping 387 yards, leaving just a wedge into the green 124 yards away.

Smith said the massive blast felt like it carried about 440 yards, and added that with the conditions Friday, his long game allowed him to attack the course.

Smith said the wind, which was gusting on and off Friday, did play a role in choosing to blast his drive over the bunker, a 330-yard carry.

“Yesterday I hit a drive like that and I had 232 yards, I think, to the front,” Smith said. “Well I got out there today and I felt pretty good, and I felt like I was swinging pretty good, and the wind is blowing straight downwind and I just stepped up and tired to hit it as hard as I could, and it ended up carrying the bunker and it rolled all the way down the hill.

“I felt like I was swinging pretty good, so I went ahead and took a smack at it and hit it pretty good,” Smith said.

According to Smith, the dry conditions should allow him to continue to swing away from the tee boxes.

Smith said he has had some success at Mystic Rock because of the wide-open fairways, allowing the traditionally long hitter to swing a little harder.

“There are some holes on the course yesterday that I tried to hit my driver harder than I hit it all year and I think you have to,” Smith said. “If I am going to take advantage of my length I have to do that out here because there’s bunkers that if I go ahead and try to step on one, I can get over the bunkers. So it’s good for me because that’s how I grew up playing, and I get in a better rhythm and I feel better on the golf course when I’m kind of letting go.”

Smith also walloped a 367-yard drive on the par-5 fifth, knocked a 7-iron from 220 yards to only about two feet from the cup and tapped in for an eagle.

Smith also was credited with the longest drive Thursday, smashing one 369 yards.

Smith additionally credited his short game as one of the reasons for his recent resurgence, noting he has had success with the belly putter, which the 12-year tour veteran has used on and off the last two years.

“I feel I can start the ball on line a little bit better and I start making some putts and it does lift you up because all of a sudden you don’t feel like you have to hit every shot right next to the hole,” Smith said.

“You feel like if you’re going to miss the green, you can still chip it up there somewhere, you can make a putt and all that stuff builds and turns into positive momentum and I haven’t had that except with about six weeks last year with the belly putter and about four weeks this year with the belly putter.

“So next year I’m going to start with the belly putter and see what happens.”

Smith tees off in today’s third round paired with Craig Barlow at 1:36 p.m.