Six tied for lead entering weekend at Bay Hill

ORLANDO, Fla. — Shane Lowry set the goal Friday at Bay Hill, and as robust because the course performs, he wouldn’t have imagined how a lot firm he would have on the high within the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Scottie Scheffler chipped in for eagle and holed a 45-foot birdie putt on his method to a 5-under 67. U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark birdied 5 of his final six holes — he had 9 birdies for the spherical — and shot 66. Hideki Matsuyama, coming off a win at Riviera, had a 70 to place himself within the combine for one more $4 million payoff.

All that motion late on a heat day in central Florida led to a six-way share of the lead that features British Open champion Brian Harman (68) and Russell Henley (69).

They have been at 7-under 137. It was the biggest logjam via 36 holes on the PGA Tour since seven have been tied for the lead on the Texas Open in 2011.

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“I am fairly completely satisfied to be the place I’m proper now,” Lowry stated after the 71 he posted as Scheffler, Clark and the others have been nonetheless on the entrance 9. “Look, there isn’t any trophies given out as we speak, so I will simply dig in over the weekend and see the place it leads me come Sunday.”

There could possibly be numerous site visitors by then. Will Zalatoris shot 69 with just one birdie on the 4 par 5s and was feeling assured as ever that his again troubles have been behind him. Justin Thomas (71) and Viktor Hovland (69) have been amongst these solely three photographs again.

Harman was one among solely two gamers to succeed in 8 underneath at any level with a birdie on the par-3 seventeenth, after which he completed with a bogey that had massive penalties. It let six gamers again into the weekend due to the 10-shot rule at player-hosted signature occasions.

That left 58 gamers to take care of a course that usually will get firmer.

“Truthfully, I guess you if I shot even par you’d be within the high 5 and have an opportunity to win,” Clark stated. “Tomorrow is meant to have some wind and be scorching, so it’ll get firmer and quicker, which it is already doing. Then it look likes possibly somewhat rain on Sunday, so it would ease up. However yeah, proper now for those who stated, ‘Hey, you shoot 3 underneath on the weekend,’ I’d take it.”

Clark took bogey on the par-5 twelfth after which let his putter get him again within the sport. Three of his final 5 birdies have been within the 30-foot vary.

Scheffler has an unlimited quantity of consideration on his placing due to how flawless he has been from tee to inexperienced. He began the second spherical by lacking a 4-foot par putt. However the world’s No. 1 participant was decided to only hit, not fear about perfection, and let it go.

He did not make every little thing. The 45-footer was a bonus, and he chipped in for eagle. However he additionally holed a 15-foot birdie putt on the robust seventeenth. And now he is within the combine once more at Bay Hill, the place he gained in 2022 and contended going into the ultimate spherical final 12 months.

“I get excited to see my title on the high of the leaderboard,” Scheffler stated. “There’s numerous names up on the high proper now. It is fairly stacked going into the weekend. I am pleased with how I completed as we speak to sort of give myself a great probability.”

Harman was a light shock solely as a result of he has missed the lower in six out of 10 earlier begins at Bay Hill, leaving final 12 months with an 82. However it’s a troublesome course, and Harman is putting it effectively.

This wasn’t a breeze for everybody.

Tommy Fleetwood hit three straight photographs into the water on the par-5 sixth gap and made a ten on his method an 80. Two-time main champion Collin Morikawa additionally had an 80, his highest spherical in his almost 5 years on the PGA Tour. Justin Rose was 60 ft from the outlet on the twelfth and took six to get down, making a triple-bogey 8. He shot 77 and missed the lower.

Lowry is fond of claiming Bay Hill permits gamers to get on a run of birdies, and there additionally is usually a stretch of bogeys the place it appears not possible to ever make par once more. He was a combined bag for a lot of the day, however wound up with a share of the lead and no complaints.

Nonetheless to return is a weekend that usually is stuffed with big-time gamers – 5 of the six gamers on the high are main champions – and numerous hanging on for pricey life.

“It relies on what they do with the greens,” Scheffler stated. “I noticed the wind was going to be up this weekend, so it might be a survival check.”