Cantlay plays it cool in Las Vegas
Golfer in five-way tie at the top after late birdie binge
Patrick Cantlay has played the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open so well that he wasn’t the least bit concerned when he was stuck in neutral Friday. Four straight birdies later, he was right up at the top again.
Cantlay ran off four straight birdies at the midway point of his round and got up-and-down from a bunker on the par-5 ninth to cap off a 6-under 65 and be part of a five-way tie for the lead going into the weekend in Las Vegas.
Martin Laird hit his second shot into 4 feet for eagle on his closing hole at the ninth for a 63. Peter Malnati, runner-up last week in Mississippi, made a 15-footer for eagle from the fringe on No. 9 to close out his 62.
They joined Cantlay at 14-under 128, along with Brian Harman (63) and Austin Cook (65).
U.S. Open champion Bryson Dechambeau, who opened with a 62, was one shot behind with a round Cantlay could appreciate. Ground can be made up quickly at the TPC Summerlin.
Dechambeau drove the green on the 380-yard seventh for the second straight day, and this time he converted the eagle putt. Still, he was 1 under for his round and out of the top 10 until he made birdie on the 15th hole and then hit a 367-yard drive on the par-5 16th, setting up a wedge to 10 feet for eagle. Just like that, he had a 67 and was right in the mix.
Cantlay won this tournament for his first PGA Tour title in 2017. He was runner-up to Dechambeau the following year, and lost in a playoff to Kevin Na last year.
LPGA: Sei Young Kim birdied five of the final six holes as darkness fell at Aronimink for a 5-under 65 and the secondround lead in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The 27-year-old South Korean closed with a 6-under 29 on the front nine. Kim had a 4-under 136 total at rugged 6,437-yard Aronimink. She tied Karrie Webb (2001) and Sarah Kemp (2011) for the lowest nine-hole score in the Women’s PGA Championship. Jennifer Kupcho (65), Danielle Kang (69), Carlota Ciganda (69) and Anna Nordqvist (68) were a stroke back.
European PGA: Matt Fitzpatrick couldn’t help but return to the only bad swing he made as the English golfer threw away the outright second-round lead on his last hole at the BMW PGA Championship. Fitzpatrick was 9 under through 17 holes and enjoying one of the great rounds on Wentworth’s storied West Course when he sent his approach at No. 8 left. The ball went into the trees, rebounded out, and dropped into the water. He wound up with a doublebogey 6 for a 7-under 65, leaving him tied for the lead with Shane Lowry (65) at 12-under overall at the European Tour’s signature event
Champions: Woody Austin shot 6-under 66 to grab a one-shot lead over Corey Pavin and Gene Sauers at the SAS Championship in Cary, N.C.