Reed leads Wyndham tourney with wife on the bag
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Patrick Reed listens to wife Justine. And with good reason: She’s carrying his clubs.
With his wife serving as his caddy, the PGA Tour rookie shot a 6-under 64 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead in the Wyndham Championship. He had an 11-under 129 total.
“I don’t mind her having all the attention,” Reed said. “Less attention for me, which means I can just focus more on my game.”
Reed had six birdies in a bogey-free round that was a stroke shy of matching his best of the year.
John Huh had the best round of the day — a 62 — to move to 10 under. John Deere winner Jordan Spieth was 9 under after a 66. Spieth also is a PGA Tour rookie, and Huh is in his second year.
Charlie Wi, Bob Estes, Rory Sabbatini, Brian Harman, Jim Herman and firstround co-leader Ross Fisher were 7 under.
Wi had a 65, Estes, Harman, Herman and Sabbatini shot 66, and Fisher had a 69.
Organizers moved up the third-round tee times Saturday to try to dodge a threat of rain, with players going off in threesomes at the first and 10th tees.
Reed, the 23-year-old former college player at Georgia and Augusta State, had top-10 finishes in his last two tournaments.
He could have built an even bigger lead in this one, but missed a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-3 seventh.
He closed his round with birdies on the eighth and ninth holes, sinking a 10-foot putt to applause from the gallery and walking off the green with his arm around Justine’s shoulder.
She began caddying for him last summer before a Monday qualifying tournament in Houston. During a humid, 100-degree day in Texas, she had no trouble lugging around the bag, he said.
“I told her to read putts for me that day, and she just has a knack for reading greens extremely well,” Reed said.
Reed certainly has a history on Donald Ross-designed courses in North Carolina. He reached the semifinals of the 2008 U.S. Amateur on Ross’ No. 2 course at Pinehurst, and the first cut he made on the tour came at this Sedgefield Country Club course two years ago after receiving a sponsor’s exemption.
“That’s why I love this event,” Reed said.