Tony Finau and Bud Cauley share halfway lead at Valero Texas Open

By Ali Stafford

Sunday 23 April 2017 17:54, UK

Tony Finau and Bud Cauley share the lead at the halfway stage of the Valero Texas Open, where Patrick Reed and Ian Poulter suffered an early exit.

Finau fired an eventful seven-under 65 at TPC San Antonio to move alongside Cauley, who set the early clubhouse target with a bogey-free 66.

PGA champion Jimmy Walker heads into the weekend well-placed and three strokes off the lead, while Ryder Cup team-mate Reed missed his third consecutive cut following an erratic 77.

Poulter also failed to make it through to the weekend in the final tournament of his medical exemption, leaving him short of the required earnings to retain his full PGA Tour status.

Beginning five strokes adrift of early pacesetter Branden Grace, Cauley converted a 40-footer at the second for the first of three birdies in as many holes.

Cauley picked up a shot at the 13th and added a fifth gain from eight feet at the 15th, before closing his blemish-free card with a close-range birdie at the par-five last.

Finau, one of the afternoon starters, opened with back-to-back birdies and cancelled out a blemish at the fourth with successive gains over the next two holes.

A 30-foot birdie at the 10th and hole-out eagle from the next fairway parachuted Finau up the leaderboard, only for the American to three-putt the 13th from distance.

Three birdies over the next four holes briefly took Finau in the outright lead, but the 27-year-old dropped a shot at the last to head into the weekend tied with Cauley on eight under.

A seven-under 65 put Australia's Cameron Smith in the tie for third also including Kevin Chappell and veteran Bob Estes, with Scotland's Martin Laird posting a second-round 67 to move inside the top 10.