Jordan Smith of England carded a 65 for the second straight day to edge ahead of the pack and claim the 36-hole lead on Friday at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas.
Smith’s second round began with an eagle-birdie burst on the first two holes at Colonial Country Club. It wasn’t until the par-4 14th that he made his first and only bogey of the tournament.
At 10-under-par 130, Smith holds a one-shot lead over Hideki Matsuyama of Japan (65), Brian Harman (66), Ryan Gerard (67) and Michael Thorbjornsen (65).
Smith, 33, has two DP World Tour wins to his credit but is in optimal position to chase his first PGA Tour title.
“it’s going to be a new experience for us out here leading for the first time,” said Smith, who leads the field in driving accuracy with 24 of 28 fairways in regulation. “So, yeah, I’m excited. Just going to stick to what I’ve been doing the last two days.
“Yeah, just see what happens, not going to force anything, not going to rush anything, just going to see what happens and enjoy it.”
Matsuyama has fared well this year, making the cut at all 13 events he has played. A 12th career victory, and a first since January 2025, would go a long way as he gears up for the U.S. Open next month.
“First, I got to get it in the fairway. But once I’m in the fairway, I feel like I can score,” said the 2021 Masters champion. “It hasn’t been that good recently but today it was, so everything came together today.”
Gerard was one of six co-leaders who shot a 64 in the first round, but that group spread out across the leaderboard during the second round. J.J. Spaun is the only other one still in the top 10, as his 68 Friday left him at 8 under par and tied for sixth. Andrew Putnam shot an even-par 70 while Matt McCarty (71), Lee Hodges (71) and Tom Kim of South Korea (72) dropped several places on a day when 70 players broke 70.
Spaun sits two shots back along with Akshay Bhatia (65), Russell Henley (66), Brice Garnett (66) and Alex Smalley (67), who remains in contention for his first PGA Tour win two weeks after he was the surprise 54-hole leader at the PGA Championship.
Spaun, the reigning U.S. Open champ, had four birdies on the front nine to get to 10 under for the tournament before consecutive bogeys on two of his last three holes, Nos. 7-8, set him back.
“It’s cool to, you know, be reminded (by fans) that you won the U.S. Open and that you have accomplished a pretty cool thing that not a lot of people get to do,” Spaun said. “You get so caught up in the day-to-day routine and grind out here that you kind of forget your successes. But it’s cool to just run into people that bring it up and it’s a fun way to reminisce on all the hard work that I put in.”
Canadian A.J. Ewart fired a career-best 63, the round of the day by two strokes, thanks in large part to a hole-in-one at the par-3 16th during his first nine. He faded his tee shot at the 197-yard hole perfectly onto the green and watched his ball roll a few feet straight into the cup.
Ewart trails Smith by three at 7 under, which ties him with countryman Mackenzie Hughes (67) as well as Michael Brennan (66) and Mac Meissner (67).
“I just hit like a three-quarter 6-iron,” Ewart said. “Wasn’t really aiming at the flag, I was trying to hit it 10 feet left of it. But, yeah, it just happened to go in and here we are.”
The cut line fell at 2 under par. Notables who failed to make the weekend included Tony Finau (even par), Camilo Villegas of Colombia (even), Webb Simpson (2 over), Rickie Fowler (3 over) and South Korea’s Sungjae Im (6 over).
–Field Level Media
