Bubba Watson takes one-shot lead in to the weekend at The Barclays
Saturday 29 August 2015 23:41, UK
A final-hole birdie moved Bubba Watson in to a narrow lead after the second round of the Barclays, where world No 1 Jordan Spieth missed the cut.
Overnight joint-leader Watson carded four birdies in a two-under 68 at Plainfield Country Club, sliding in from 12 feet at the 18th to move one-shot clear of the chasing pack.
Watson had been part of a five-way tie for the lead before he got to seven under for the week, while the surprise saw Spieth crash out of the tournament and lose his spot at the top of the world rankings after carding another error-filled three-over 73.
A blemish-free 66 from Open champion Zach Johnson lifted him in to a tie for second alongside Henrik Stenson and Tony Finau, with Jason Dufner also on six under after missing a 15 footer at the last that would have moved him joint-top of the leaderboard.
"Today was one of the best putting rounds I had in a long time," Johnson told Sky Sports 4. "I hit it good to shoot five under, making some crucial putts and looking really solid with the four to eight footers."
Spencer Levin briefly held a two-shot lead after picking up three birdies in a four hole stretch over the front nine, but stuttered over the closing holes to lie alongside Henrik Stenson and Jason Day in the group three off the pace.
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A round-of-the-day 64 from Jason Bohn lifted the American in to a tie for sixth with Colombia's Camilo Villegas, as Paul Casey plummeted down the leaderboard after failing to post a single gain in a six-over 76 in favourable scoring conditions.
Casey finished right on the cut line with compatriot Justin Rose, who recovered from an opening-round 77 and a double-bogey midway through his second round to fire four birdies after reaching the turn and make a five-under 65.
A three-putt triple-bogey from Rickie Fowler at the 10th was followed with a quadruple-bogey eight at the 15th from the water after he twice fired out of bounds, with the Players Championship closing a five-over 75 in missing the cut.
Joining Spieth and Fowler in making an early exit included former world No 1 Adam Scott, who now looks set to miss the rest of the FedExCup season, and last year's champion Billy Horschel after he closed a bogey-filled 77.
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