Nate Lashley took advantage of the opportunity to put his name on top of the leaderboard for the second-straight day. Lashley shot a 67, putting him at 14-under 130 for a one-shot lead at scoring-friendly Detroit Golf Club.
It wasn’t Lashley, though, who had the attention on him but rather Cameron Champ. The big-hitting American played one of the best stretches on the PGA TOUR this season, matching the lowest nine-hole score and the longest birdie-eagle streak.
Champ had an eight-under 28 on the front nine thanks to shooting under par for six straight holes.
‘The hole looked pretty big for a while,’ he said.
The rookie cooled off on a steamy day with a one-over 37 on the back nine, closing with a bogey after pushing a four-foot putt just to the right and past the cup for a seven-under 65.
That left a gap which Lashley took.
‘A lot of the weeks the courses are really difficult, so it’s a nice change coming here,’ said Lashley of the layout.
Charles Howell III (67) was two shots back. JT Poston (63) and Ryan Armour (69) were another stroke back.
But not in the mix were Dustin Johnson and US Open champion Gary Woodland. Both finished at two under to miss the cut by three strokes.
‘It just seemed like every time I hit a bad shot, it was in the wrong spot and made bogey,’ said Johnson, who had four of five bogeys on his back nine.
Woodland opened with a 72 in his first start since winning his first Major and bounced back with a 69, an up-and-down round with eight birdies and five bogeys.
He and Johnson will have an extra couple of days to prepare for the Open Championship.
‘Yeah, I need to get ready, but I’m excited about Portrush,’ Woodland said. ‘I’ve heard great things. But I’ve got some work to do, just tighten some things up. I wasn’t prepared as much as I probably should have been this week. But two weeks off, I’ll have plenty of time and I’ll be ready to go.’
Chez Reavie, who won the Travelers Championship last week, and Bubba Watson also failed to make it to the weekend.
South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli hit 10 of 14 fairways and 11 of 18 greens in regulation but could only muster a 70. He starts the weekend six back.
