Flying start
23-year-old Berger leads at 9 under par after second round
Ten years ago, Daniel Berger, then 13, got a job on the driving range at The Dye Preserve Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida, retrieving golf balls. Ivan Lendl, the former top-ranked men’s tennis player in the world, used his connections to get Berger, whose father was a friend of Lendl’s, the afterschool work.
Operating the “picker” led to post-work practice on the driving range, a passion for the game and a fledgling pro career that is on a fast track.
Friday in the second round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic, Berger, last season’s rookie of the year on the PGA Tour, shot a 6-under-par 64 at TPC Southwind to take the second-round lead at 9-under 131. Berger, 23, had a bogeyfree round, one preserved by a key par save on No. 18 when he overcame hitting his tee shot into a fairway bunker.
“I’ve played well the last couple of months,” Berger said. “It’s just a testament to how hard I’ve worked in the offseason. It took a little while for it to kind of kick in, but I’ve got a lot of confidence.”
Berger will enter today’s third round with a threestroke lead over Tom Hoge, who shot 69 for 134, and a four-stroke cushion over Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Brooks Koepka. Mickelson and Koepka shot 65s and Johnson had a 69.
Hoge overcame a rough stretch to the start of his round — four bogeys in his first 11 holes — and closed
with three birdies, including on his 17th and 18th holes. On his final hole — the par-4 ninth — he stuck his approach to two feet.
“I just kind of hung in there,” Hoge said. “And those two birdies at the end was a real nice way to finish.”
Johnson had an opportunity to catch Berger, but he struggled coming in with a bogey at 17 and a double bogey at 18, where he three-putted from seven feet.
“I’m playing a lot better than my score,” Johnson said. “Making bogey and double bogey my last two holes from the middle of the fairway was not a very good finish. I just made a couple of bad swings.”
Nine golfers are at 4-under 136, including first-round co-leader Shawn Stefani and trick-shot specialist Wesley Bryan, who has won twice on the Web.com Tour this season and is making his PGA Tour debut.
Koepka, who, like Berger, attended Florida State, entered the FESJC as a favorite to win a tournament lacking many top-40 players in the world. Johnson (6), Koepka (17) and Mickelson (20) are the only ranked golfers in the field.
But, after 36 holes, Berger, whose father Jay was a top10 player on the Association of Tennis Professionals tour, was getting solid iron play. Five of his six birdies Friday were from inside 10 feet.
“Everything is (working) when you don’t have a bogey and shoot 64,” Berger said. “I’m just excited to see what happens this weekend and get ready for (the U.S. Open) next week.”
Berger has followed up his rookie of the year season with a solid sophomore campaign. He has had 10-top 10 finishes and made 14 of 17 cuts.
He’s also seemed unaffected by having to replace his driver and 3-wood, which succumbed to wear and tear last week.
“I just hit them too much and (for) too long,” Berger said. “I was using older clubs and you hit them thousands and thousands of times and, essentially, the faces cave. It was a little bit stressful because I’ve used the same club for so long and I don’t usually switch to new clubs.”
Berger said the “guys at TaylorMade were great” and fitted him with what he called a better driver.
“I’m hitting it even better than I was before I cracked it,” he said.
Koepka opened with an even-par 70 on Thursday and, like Berger, shot a bogey-free round Friday. Most of Koepka’s birdies also were inside 12 feet.
“I hit the ball a lot better,” Koepka said. “(Thursday) was awful.”
On his back nine, Koepka had birdies at Nos. 3, 6 and 7 — all inside seven feet. On the par-3 fourth, his 57-foot-plus putt stopped inches shy of the cup.
“I felt I struck it pretty well,” Koepka said. “The putter was a little better and (my) speed control was good. As far as ball-striking goes, it was good. I hit a lot more fairways and close to the hole. That always helps.”
Mickelson missed seven of 14 fairways for the second straight day, but he repeatedly scrambled out of trouble and took advantage of his putting. He needed only 25 putts during the round, which included six birdies and one bogey.
“I have a good opportunity heading into the weekend,” Mickelson said. “I get to feel the pressure and excitement of having a chance to win, especially a week before the U.S. Open. I love getting into the thick of it.”