Taylor Pendrith shoots an eight-under-par 64 at Rocket Mortgage Classic to share lead alongside fellow American Taylor Moore after two rounds; a resurgent Rickie Fowler, looking to win his PGA tournament in four years, is one shot back, alongside top-ranked amateur Ludvig Aberg
Saturday 1 July 2023 16:06, UK
Taylor Moore and Taylor Pendrith shared the Rocket Mortgage Classic lead at 13 under on Friday, hoping to hold off a veteran trying to end a victory drought and a promising young pro aiming for his first PGA Tour victory.
Pendrith shot an eight-under-par 64 at Detroit Golf Club, one off the tournament record. Moore, who began the day tied with Monday qualifier Peter Kuest, had a 67 to match Pendrith at 13-under 131.
Rickie Fowler (65) and former top-ranked amateur Ludvig Aberg (67) were a shot back after two straight solid rounds. Fowler jumped into contention, chipping in for eagle from 27 feet on the par-five 17th. Fowler set himself up with a chance for his first win since 2019 at the US Open two weeks ago with an opening 62 before closing with a 75 to plummet into a fifth-place tie.
Aberg, who starred at Texas Tech, finished the season number one in the PGA Tour University ranking. The Swede became the first player to go straight from college to PGA Tour membership without going through Q-school or earning enough money or points from sponsor exemptions. He's in his third event as a pro after tying for 25th in the Canadian Open and 24th last week in the Travelers Championship.
Collin Morikawa (67), Justin Lower (65), Aaron Rai (68), Adam Schenk (68) were 11 under, two strokes behind the leaders.
Moore won the Valspar Championship in March when he outlasted Jordan Spieth for his first PGA Tour title. He missed the cut in his previous three tournaments after tying for 72nd at the PGA Championship.
On Friday, he opened with a bridie and had a temporary cushion with five birdies in a six-hole stretch midway through his round.
Pendrith, a big hitter from Canada, closed the gap with five birdies on his front nine and three more on his back nine in a bogey-free round. He tied for seventh this year in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am for his best career finish.
Kuest, ranked 789th in the world, had a bogey early and late in his round to finish with a 70 that put him three shots back.
Playing for the third time as a qualifier this season, his third tee shot went way left. Faced with a risk-reward decision due to low-hanging tree branches between him and the green, he played it safe and punched a shot to his right and onto the fairway. After an accurate approach set up a four-foot putt, he lipped out for bogey.
