XANDER SCHAUFFLE ATE up five strokes in four holes last night on the way to a seven-under par 64 and the second-round lead in the US PGA Tour Phoenix Open.
The world number four caught fire on the back nine at TPC Scottsdale in Arizona with birdies at the 12th, 13th and 14th and an eagle at 15.
Another birdie at the 18th gave him a 12-under total of 130 and a one-stroke lead over US Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker and Keegan Bradley. Rory McIlroy and world number two Jon Rahm are on -5, while Padraig Harrington missed the cut in Scottsdale.
Stricker, who turns 54 on February 23, fired a five-under par 66 o put himself in position to challenge Sam Snead’s record for oldest US PGA Tour winner. The American is chasing a 12th tour title but his first since Kapalua in 2012.
If he can end the drought he would supplant Snead, who was 52 years and 10 months old when he won his tour-record 82nd title at the 1965 Greater Greensboro Open.
“I mean, I know it’s a long shot,” Stricker said. “I’ve got to play my very best, just like anybody else does out here.
“But you know, I’ve been there. I’ve won a few times out on this tour and I know what it takes, although it has been a while.
“It would be fun to see how I handle it, if I do get that opportunity.”
Schauffele, 27, is also out to end a dry spell that stretches back to January 2019, when he claimed his fourth career title at the Tournament of Champions. Since then he’s had seven runner-up finishes, including a tie for second at Torrey Pines last week.
Schauffele acknowledged that as the winless run continued, he began to push perhaps too much, and he has worked this season on staying patient.
“I’ve played in a calm state of mind, and that’s when I’ve done my best,” said Schauffele, who demonstrated his ability to let the round come to him as he picked up just one birdie on the front nine on Friday.
“It was kind of a slow front nine,” said Schauffele, who rolled in a 25-foot birdie putt at the 12th to jumpstart the round.
He followed with a tap-in birdie at 13 and a five-footer at 14. At the par-five 15th, he rolled in a 21-foot eagle putt, that put him in a tie for the lead at 11-under.
“I’m going to be honest, I thought it was going to miss just left,” he said. “Kind of had soft speed on it and kind of held, which is a bonus.”
He missed a birdie chance at 17 and was in a fairway bunker at the 18th — but put his second shot five feet from the pin and made it.
“That bunker shot on 18 was good for me,” said Schauffele, whose drive was headed toward the water but cleared the hazard to land in the bunker.
After so many near misses in the past two years, Schauffele wasn’t going to get ahead of himself.
“It’s a one-shot lead,” he said. “I think this is one of those golf courses where no lead is very safe … (I) need to keep my head down and stay calm.”
South Korean Lee Kyoung-hoon and Americans Scottie Scheffler and Sam Burns shared fourth place on 10-under 132.
Lee had seven birdies in a five-under 66 and Scheffler had an eagle and six birdies to counter a double-bogey in his 65.
Burns had moved to 11-under through 17 holes but closed with a bogey in his 68 to drop out of a share of second.
Former major champions Brooks Koepka and Jordan Spieth were in a group of eight players on eight under.
