Justin Rose carded a scorching 65 to push his result in 4 strokes at Torrey Pines, the place Brooks Koepka made the reduce in his PGA Tour return however one other massive identify wasn’t as lucky.
FOX SPORTS, accessible on Kayo Sports activities, is streaming The 2026 PGA Tour LIVE & Unique | New to Kayo? Be part of now and get your first month for simply $1.
LEADERBOARD: The place does everybody fare after Spherical 2?
England’s Rose adopted up a 10-under first spherical on the North Course with an arguably extra spectacular seven-under effort on the harder South Course, the place he closed with back-to-back birdies to set a 36-hole match scoring file with a complete of 17-under 127.
“That was two particular rounds of golf, at the moment most likely much more so simply given it’s onerous to usually observe up a low one,” stated the 45-year-old, the 2013 US Open champion whose 12 PGA Tour titles embody the 2019 Farmers Insurance coverage Open at Torrey Pines.
“I felt like decision-making was spot on when it comes to how I managed my recreation,” Rose stated after a spherical that featured six birdies, an eagle and one bogey.
Rose was 4 strokes in entrance of Eire’s Seamus Energy, who rebounded from his solely bogey at his penultimate gap, the eighth, with an eagle on the ninth to put up a six-under 66 for 131.
Energy was two pictures forward of People Joel Dahmen and McMcGreevy. Dahmen had three eagles in his 63 and McGreevy signed for a 67 to hitch him on 11-under 133.
‘Fallen again in love with the sport’ | 00:39
5-time main winner Koepka, one of many highest-profile gamers to hitch LIV when the Saudi-backed renegade tour launched in 2022, was 14 off the tempo however he’ll be taking part in the weekend in his first match again on the PGA Tour.
Two-time main winner Xander Schauffele wasn’t so lucky as his streak of 72 consecutive PGA Tour cuts made — the fifth-longest such streak in tour historical past — got here to an finish, the American’s three-under 69 leaving him one stroke shy of the weekend.
“It’s going to be good to have the weekend off. Going to go house and loosen up and regroup,” Schauffele stated.
Whereas so many individuals within the golf world had been watching alongside to see if Schauffele might hold the streak going, the person himself stated it wasn’t one thing he was eager about within the second.
“Not likely,” he stated.
“I imply, afterwards. There’s no boards on the North Course so I sort of missed my putt and I checked out Austin and I stated, Is that it? He stated, Yeah, you’re carried out, and I used to be like okay. So, you already know, when it comes to pulling a tooth, that was sort of it.
“I believe the entire level of the streak is you simply — I imply, Scheffler’s on a great one and also you
don’t actually give it some thought, you’re simply making an attempt to hit as many good pictures as attainable and make
as many good putts as attainable.
“I had loads of golf at the moment to make it and bogeying a drivable par 4 and parring two par 5s inthe center of the green, you need to miss the reduce. So right here I’m.”
Koepka, in the meantime, hadn’t performed a non-major PGA Tour occasion for the reason that 2022 WGC Match Play and hadn’t performed a aggressive spherical in 14 weeks earlier than posting a one-over 73 on Thursday — when he was heartened by the nice and cozy reception he acquired from followers.
On Saturday he had an eagle and three birdies in a 68 to make the reduce on the quantity at three-under 141.
“It feels good,” Koepka stated. “Simply wished to play 4 days this week, I believe that was vital.
“I believe yesterday I used to be excited to play, nervous, and sort of didn’t know what to anticipate,” added Koepka, whose return to the PGA Tour was facilitated by a brand new program for returning gamers that features limitations on eligibility for some high occasions in addition to monetary penalties.
“Right this moment felt extra regular,” he stated.
“I undoubtedly nonetheless received antsy, perhaps a bit of little bit of nerves simply making an attempt to determine it out and see the place my recreation’s at too.”