File photo of Viktor Hovland, co-leader after the second day of the Tour Championship in Atlanta on Friday.
By Rahul Banerji
Past winner Viktor Hovland climbed to the top of the leaderboard but had company and a host in pursuit after 36 holes of the Tour Championship in Atlanta on Friday.
The genial Norwegian, champion in 2023, was joined by event debutant Ryan Gerard (65-65) heading into Moving Day at the East Lake Golf Club after he followed his opening 64 with a 66 to total 10 under par 130.
A past winner of the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, Hovland and Gerard had a train of heavyweights on their heels.
The group included world number one and St Jude Championship winner Scottie Scheffler in tied fifth on 8 under 132 along with Cameron Young who dazzled on Friday with an 8 under 62, while Colin Morikawa and Chris Gotterup shared third place on 9 under 131.
Young was last in the 30-member field after Thursday’s level par 70 but rocketed up the standings with five birdies on the front nine and another two immediately after the turn before a bogey on 12 and some missed chances stemmed his momentum till an eagle on 18.
“I was in last place about three-and-a-half hours ago,” Young said later. “There’s not much wind today, and the field seems to be playing pretty well for even par being last place after yesterday.
“I think I can pat myself on the back for shooting 8 under, but that doesn’t change how much work there is left to even give yourself a chance.”
Falling away
In contrast, a rocky back nine dropped Akshay Bhatia (65-69) out of the top 10 after he had ended day one in a tie for fifth. The Indian-American star, in his third Tour Championship, is now tied for 11th four shots behind the leaders.
Having picked up four birdies in the first 10 holes, Bhatia had moved to 9 under for the tournament and within striking distance of the lead but the momentum disintegrated as he entered East Lake’s demanding closing stretch.
Bhatia dropped a shot on 12, followed by a double bogey on the tricky par-3 15th, where the undulating slopes punished his approach. Another bogey on 17 threatened to unravel the afternoon before he managed to salvage a 1 under 69 with birdie on the final hole.
Day one leader Min Woo Lee of Australia also lost ground, returning a 3 over 73 after Thursday’s 8 under 62 and shared 15th place with four others including a past India winner in Joohyung ‘Tom’ Kim of Korea.
Two trophies — the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup — are on offer this week and rain in the Atlanta area has created soft greens that are giving up low scores, but staying out of the ankle-high rough can be penal as many have found.
On Saturday, new last man Robert MacIntyre of Scotland will play by himself as Young had done the previous day thanks to J.J. Spaun’s withdrawal after round one.
Also read: Wyndham Clark toughs it out for BMW Championship title
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