PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Jake Knapp was 11 pictures worse than his opening spherical on the Cognizant Basic and nonetheless stayed in entrance, curling in a 15-foot birdie putt on his last gap Friday for a 1-under 70 and a one-shot lead over Matthieu Pavon.
Knapp, who made 12 birdies Thursday for the fifteenth spherical of 59 or decrease on the PGA Tour, went 10 holes and not using a birdie. He had a double bogey when his tee shot discovered the water. Certainly one of his higher pictures hit a sprinkler cap and bounced 40 yards away.
He wasn’t positive what to anticipate. It was near good at some point and a battle the following.
“I’ve by no means needed to comply with up a 59 at a match earlier than,” Knapp mentioned. “It is all new to me. Yesterday, every part was simply clicking ball-striking smart, distance management felt actually good, was capable of management flight and home windows. All that was good.”
There was extra wind at PGA Nationwide. Putts that discovered the middle of the cup managed to burn the sting.
“A few wayward pictures, however nothing too regarding,” he mentioned.
One participant had purpose to have fun, together with shedding just a few tears. Florida State junior Luke Clanton simply made the lower with a 5-under 66 — he was simply 4 pictures behind — giving the 21-year-old sufficient factors to get a PGA Tour card after the NCAA championships on the finish of Could.
Clanton already has two runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour and one other pair of top-10s. He’s used to the massive stage, and he has one other alternative this weekend.
The identical holds true for thus many others.
Knapp was at 13-under 129. Pavon, the Frenchman who received at Torrey Pines final yr, had a 64 and briefly held the lead till narrowly lacking a birdie on his final gap to complete one behind.
Daniel Berger, who grew up close to PGA Nationwide, went out in 31 to share the lead however did not make one other birdie the remainder of the way in which. He fell again with a bogey during which he gouged one shot out of the muck and weeds on No. 11 and did properly to restrict the harm.
Berger had a 68 and was at 11-under 131, together with Michael Kim (66), Doug Ghim (63) and Jesper Svensson (67), a rookie who earned his card by means of the European tour final yr.
“I simply sort of misplaced slightly steam on the again 9,” Berger mentioned. “I do not know if I did not eat sufficient meals and began to really feel slightly bit off there. However hit a nasty 9-iron, plugged it within the hazard, and I really bought away with one simply to make a bogey there.”
Former Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson confirmed sufficient recreation at age 49 to submit a 66 and joined Rickie Fowler (68) and Taylor Montgomery at 132.
Jordan Spieth was proper there with them, holing a 50-foot birdie putt on the sixteenth gap. However a day after he birdied all three holes of the “Bear Entice,” the par-3 seventeenth had him for lunch.
Spieth pulled his tee shot into the hazard. His 25-foot putt drifted 4 ft by the outlet, and he missed the comeback to make triple bogey. A birdie on the 18th gave him a 70, however he was six pictures behind going into the weekend.
Spieth added the Cognizant Basic to his schedule for the primary time after the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill selected to not give a sponsor exemption to the three-time main champion, awarding them as an alternative of Min Woo Lee, Mackenzie Hughes and Rafael Campos.
Knapp opened with a birdie after his spherical of 59 — he began on the par-5 tenth gap — after which it went quiet. He made bogey from the bunker on the sixteenth. He discovered a bunker off the tee on the par-5 18th that stored him from reaching the inexperienced in two.
It a day when every part conspired in opposition to him on the par-5 third when his second shot was excellent of the inexperienced, hit a sprinkler cap and wound up some 40 yards away close to the ninth tee. He pitched properly to eight ft for birdie after which birdied the following gap and was again on monitor till his tee shot discovered the water on the par-4 sixth.
“Clearly, at the moment wasn’t as nice,” he mentioned. “I will exit and observe slightly bit and ensure just a few issues are cleaned up. However for essentially the most half, you may’t actually overdo it on this course. You possibly can’t overpower it or something like that. Simply bought to take what it provides you.”
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