Scottie Scheffler fires round of nine-under to move top by a shot at the PGA Tour's season-opening event at The Sentry in Hawaii; England's Tyrrell Hatton produced sensational round of 11-under to move one off the lead; watch the third round live on Sky Sports on Saturday (5.30pm)
Saturday 6 January 2024 08:39, UK
World No 1 Scottie Scheffler birdied his final hole to move in front of the pack at the second round of The Sentry on Friday in Hawaii, while a 62 from England's Tyrrell Hatton moved him one off the lead.
Scheffler shot a nine-under 64 to finish his first 36 holes at the Plantation Course at Kapalua in 16-under 130. Englishman Hatton posted the low round of the tournament thus far - an 11-under 62 - to reach 15 under along with American Brendon Todd and South Korea's Sungjae Im.
Scheffler got his only bogey of the day out of the way at the par-3 second hole. He immediately bounced back with a birdie and sank a 24-foot eagle putt at the par-five fifth.
The 2022 Masters champ made seven birdies from there, including four straight at Nos 12-15, culminating with a two-putt birdie at the par-five 18th.
"Scores around this place are pretty low, but it's one of those places if you go out there and play well you're going to get rewarded," Scheffler said.
"If you start not hitting it in the right spots, you can get in trouble. Just got to keep the pedal down out here."
Hatton eagled his final hole in spectacular fashion to polish off his 62, tying his career-low round on the PGA Tour.
Hatton made four birdies on his front nine before truly heating up. He sank birdies on six of his next eight holes while making his only bogey of the round.
At No 18, he was just off the green but almost 97 feet away from the pin for his third shot, and his lag putt gained speed just before finding the cup.
"I actually think 11-under is my lowest round as a pro, so that's something to be proud of," Hatton said. "Maybe a surprise to do it in the second round back to start the year, after how long I've had off."
Todd made an eagle putt at the par-five fifth on his way to a 64, and Im had a steady 66 to join the co-leaders.
Last summer's FedEx Cup champion, Viktor Hovland of Norway, is tied for fifth at 14 under after shooting a 67 Friday. He's joined by Collin Morikawa (67), Byeong Hun An of South Korea (64) and Chris Kirk (65).
"Overall, it just felt very comfy out there," An said. "The wind wasn't too hard, or harsh on us, so that's why you saw a lot of good scores today."
Jordan Spieth (67) and first-round leader Sahith Theegala (69) were among those tied at 13 under.
The Sentry is the season-opening event of the 2024 PGA Tour season, and only the top 50 in last season's FedEx Cup playoffs plus any player who won a tournament were invited to the field. There is no 36-hole cut.
Defending champion Jon Rahm of Spain is not there after switching allegiances to LIV Golf.
Watch the Sentry throughout the week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage continues continues on Saturday from 5.30pm on Sky Sports Golf and Main Event. Stream the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour and more on NOW.
