Scottie Scheffler bumped in a par putt at No. 18 for a second-round 60 to stand atop the leaderboard at 16 under through 36 holes of the Travelers Championship on Friday at Cromwell, Conn.
Scheffler missed a long birdie by mere inches to the right on the par-4 18th before tapping in for the 10-under 60, one better than Norway’s Viktor Hovland (61 on Friday) and two better than Akshay Bhatia’s second-round 62.
Hovland is alone in second, two back of Scheffler at 14 under. Bhatia ended the day in a tie for third at 12 under with Eric Cole (65).
Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick had a late-afternoon run undone by bogeys at Nos. 16 and 18. He settled for a 66 and a tie for fifth at 10 under with Bud Cauley and Ben Griffin, each of whom also posted 66.
Heavy rain led to soft greens and low scoring at TPC River Highlands on Friday, a common theme in the second round albeit nothing entirely novel at the event.
With a round of 60, Scheffler ties Patrick Cantlay (2011) and Tommy Bolt (1954) for the top second round. Jim Furyk (58 in 2016) holds the tournament single-round scoring record and Cameron Young posted a 59 in the third round two years ago.
After opening with a birdie Friday, Scheffler made a bogey 5 at the second. The missed 6-footer on the par-4 was arguably his last mistake Friday before shifting into overdrive. He had 10 birdies on his final 16 holes in the second round with matching scores of 30 on the front and back nine in his bid to win the event for the second time in three years.
Hovland was 9 under on Friday with a 30 on the front nine and a highlight eagle on the par-5 13th.
Bhatia walked off the course earlier with the lead before Hovland and Scheffler closed out the round emphatically.
–Field Level Media
