Jake Knapp followed his opening-round 59 with a far more modest, 1-under-par 70 but birdied his final hole to take a one-stroke lead as play wound down Friday at the Cognizant Classic in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Knapp will head into the weekend at 13-under 129 holding a one-stroke lead over Frenchman Matthieu Pavon (64). On Thursday, Knapp became the 15th player in PGA Tour history to shoot a round below 60.
Knapp’s second round started on the back nine at PGA National Resort’s Champion course, and after a birdie and a bogey, he later made consecutive birdies at Nos. 3 and 4. But a water ball off the tee at the par-4 sixth led to a messy double bogey to bring him back to even for the round.
He wrapped up by holing a 16 1/2-foot birdie putt at the par-4 ninth, his ball curling into the cup from the left side, to break a tie with Pavon.
Doug Ghim shot the best round of the day, an 8-under 63, to join a tie for third at 11 under with Michael Kim (66), Daniel Berger (68) and Sweden’s Jesper Svensson (67)+. Rickie Fowler (68) and 49-year-old former Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson (66) were part of a tie at 10 under.
The feel-good story of the day belonged to Luke Clanton, the top-ranked amateur in the world. By following Thursday’s 67 with a 66, Clanton ensured he would make the cut and earn the 20th and final point necessary for an automatic PGA Tour card via the PGA Tour University accelerated pathway.
The Florida native and member of Florida State’s golf team made four birdies in a row on the front nine to erase a bogey at No. 2. There was an emphatic cheer from his loved ones as he made birdie at the par-5 18th to get to 9 under, well above the projected cut line.
With players still on the course Friday afternoon, the cut line was projected at 4 under par. Notable names who won’t see the weekend included Gary Woodland (2 under), Byeong Hun An of South Korea (even par), Mackenzie Hughes of Canada (1 over) and Brendon Todd (11 over).
–Field Level Media
