CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nobody has separated from the pack after two rounds of play at the 2023 Wells Fargo Championship. In fact, the leaderboard is rather bunched.
While the usual stars may not be in contention, 37 players are within five shots of the lead entering the weekend, setting up for what could be a thrilling finish at Quail Hollow Club.
Everyone’s favorite Angry Golfer Tyrrell Hatton fired a 6-under 65 to tie the low round of the day and claim a share of the lead at 8 under alongside Nate Lashley (66) and Wyndham Clark (67). Six players are all T-4 and just a shot back at 7 under, including Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas and Adam Scott.
Rain was in the forecast for Saturday’s third round, but it appears to have cleared up for the final stretch in the Queen City. Here’s what we learned from a busy Friday at Quail Hollow.
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Defending champ fights back
Because Quail Hollow hosted the Presidents Cup in the fall, the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship was played at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm in Potomac, Maryland, where Max Homa claimed his fourth of now six PGA Tour wins.
The defending champ earned his maiden win on Tour at Quail Hollow back in 2019 and went on to compile a perfect 4-0-0 record against the International team in the Presidents Cup. In other words, Homa has a strong history at the Queen City’s crown jewel, but you wouldn’t know that after his first 27 holes this week.
Homa made the turn on Friday below the projected cut line but caught fire down the stretch and rose to T-13 at 5 under thanks to four consecutive birdies on holes 13 through 16. He’s now just three shots back and well within striking distance of the lead if he can go low again on Moving Day.
Make that four birdies in a row. https://t.co/Zwf9yFUfyR pic.twitter.com/KbJD0VE02T
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2023
Another AimPoint ambassador
A perennial top-10 player, Justin Thomas has stumbled to world No. 15 (by his lofty standards) this PGA Tour season, and a key factor to that has been his putting. Thomas entered this week 152nd in Strokes Gained: Putting, but after two days at Quail Hollow the 15-time winner on Tour finds himself T-4 at 7 under and just one shot off the lead.
If you’ve been watching closely this week, you may have noticed the 30-year-old’s new approach on the green: he’s now using the AimPoint putting method.
“Yeah, I learned it last week or I guess had a lesson with it. It just, I felt like it was something that maybe it’s the missing piece, maybe it’s not,” Thomas explained after his 4-under 67 in the second round. “I feel like I’ve been putting significantly better than the putting results have shown and a lot of it, at least I’ve noticed these last two days is it just takes a lot of the guessing out and simplifies it.”
“Obviously you get some specific putts that are left edge or left center or a cup or whatever, but out here at a place like this you have a lot of big breaking putts and putts that require some feel to where I’m able to get an “ish” read kind of in a certain area,” he continued. “Then I’m able to use my feel and my kind of touch that I feel like I have to match the speed to that. It’s really just, it’s actually sped everything up for me, it’s sped my process up and simplified it. I’ve really liked it the last two days.”
Thomas and his putting coach, John Graham, got together with Mark Sweeney, who invented the AimPoint method, last week and worked on the new approach for a few hours. AimPoint disciples Keegan Bradley and Max Homa have also helped Thomas learn the new system.
“Keegan said it best, it’s a very simple idea but like a complex system, if you will, or maybe opposite. It’s one of those things that once you get it, it’s a very generic, pretty simple like bang, go, do it,” said Thomas. “It’s just getting comfortable enough with what you’re feeling. And how everybody feels slope is different. How I feel it might be different than you or Keegan or Max or whatever. At the end of the day, if the ball’s going in the hole, who cares, right?”
Hole-in-one Hubbard
Mark Hubbard aced the par-3 17th on Friday with a picture-perfect 6-iron from 198 yards for his third career hole-in-one on the PGA Tour.
You may remember Hubbard famously made a hole-in-one at last year’s Rocket Mortgage Classic but not before dropping his club and describing his shot as “disgusting.”
Why can’t that ever happen to me?
🚨 ACE ALERT 🚨@HomelessHubbs records his third ace on TOUR on the difficult 17th @WellsFargoGolf. pic.twitter.com/HqpWlNhPNO
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2023
Ribbons for Lance
Lance “Last Call” Ten Broeck, who famously played and caddied in the same PGA Tour event, died Sunday at St. Mary’s Hospital in West Palm Beach, Florida, at the age of 67.
During Friday’s second round at Quail Hollow, a strong contingent of players and caddies wore ribbons to honor Ten Broeck.
“Generally somebody always sets it up when someone’s passed and it’s just something respectful for the guys who have been out here and they were just there on the first tee,” said Tommy Fleetwood. “I met him once or twice. I actually didn’t know him as well as a lot of the other guys and I didn’t have the opportunity to spend that much time with him, but very cool guy and a great story and obviously loved the game.”
Adam Scott, on the other hand, knew Last Call Lance rather well.
“Yeah, it’s sad obviously, but he had been a little unwell for a while. Yeah, I had a lot of fun times with Lance early on in my career,” said Scott with a smile. “It was many moons ago, but I always got along well with him, fond memories.”
Family matters
Stewart Cink has won with his son, Reagan, on the bag, and this week in Charlotte he has another family member as his caddie: his wife, Lisa.
An eight-time winner on the PGA Tour, Cink has been driving the struggle bus this year. The 49-year-old missed the cut in his last six starts dating back to the Genesis Invitational in February, but ended his unfortunate streak with a 5-under 66 on Friday to sit T-11 entering the weekend.
Making memories as a family ❤️@StewartCink has his wife, Lisa, on the bag this week @WellsFargoGolf.
Currently sitting at 5-under, they have successfully made the cut together. pic.twitter.com/AoWFeODiPQ
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 5, 2023
