LA QUINTA, Calif. - Patrick Reed found La Quinta Country Club to his liking, too, leaving everyone else behind again in the Humana Challenge.
A day after shooting a 9-under-par 63 at PGA West’s Arnold Palmer Private Course to take the lead, Reed had another 9-under 63 down the road Friday at tree lined La Quinta to stretch his advantage to two strokes over Brendon Todd.
“It’s great to have that feeling that you can go out and shoot 63,” said Reed, the Wyndham Championship winner in August. “And to actually do it two times in a row shows that what we have done during the off season and what we’re doing now is working.
“The good thing is even though we’re playing great, I feel like there’s still room for improvement out there while I was playing. Today, I felt like there were three shots out there, yesterday, I thought there was one or two out there.”
Todd had a 63 on the Palmer course. He’s the only player in the field without a bogey.
“Obviously, both days were really solid,” Todd said. “Bogey-free was huge. … Before I knew it, I was at 7- or 8-under with a few to play, feeling like I should birdie every hole. … The weather’s been so good, I’m not surprised to see what Patrick did.”
The temperature climbed into the 80s and it was so calm the ponds looked like glass, the water as still as the plastic swans PGA West uses to scare away geese.
The 23-year-old Reed eagled the par-5 fifth hole, hitting a high 5-iron approach that landed softly on the left side of the green and rolled to 4 feet. He also had eight birdies and his lone bogey in 36 holes.
“That tee shot on 5’s not easy,” Reed said. “You have to hit a perfect high cut around that tree and if it goes straight, you’re actually through the fairway. You have to hit a hook around those trees. And when I hit a perfect drive like that, had a perfect number for a 5-iron to the left flag. When I hit something three-quarters or 85 percent, it’s normally a little draw, so I just aimed it in the middle of the green and hit it up to there to 4 feet. That was kind of just perfect for me.”
Ryan Palmer was third, three strokes back at 15-under, after a 65 at La Quinta. He also made a short eagle putt on the fifth hole.
Charley Hoffman, the 2007 winner, was 14-under after a 66 on PGA West’s Jack Nicklaus Private Course. He had five consecutive birdies on the front nine.
David Lingmerth (Arkansas Razorbacks) had an eagle, three birdies and a bogey for a 4-under 68. Scott Gardiner (Farmington) had five birdies and one bogey for a 68. John Daly (Dardanelle, Arkansas Razorbacks) had seven birdies, one bogey and one double bogey to make his 68.
Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) had five birdies, a bogey and a double bogey for a 2-under 70. Bryce Molder (Conway) had four birdies and four bogeys for an even-par round of 72.
EUROPEAN TOUR McIlroy two back
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates - Rory McIlroy birdied his last two holes to post a 5-under-par 67 and lie two shots off the lead two rounds into the Abu Dhabi Championship on Friday.
At 7 under overall, McIlroy was rapt to be in contention for a second victory in three tournaments. Playing partner Phil Mickelson was also happy, though in relief to make the cut by two shots at 1 under with a 70 after a first round 73.
Tied for the lead were Scotland’s Craig Lee (67) and Spain’s Rafa Cabrera-Bello (68) at 9 under, a stroke ahead of England’s Danny Willett (63), who eagled the par-5 8th hole at National Course beside seven birdies.
McIlroy was sharing fourth with Argentina’s Ricardo Gonzalez (66) and Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn (70).
CHAMPIONS TOUR
Mediate leads with 63
KAUPULEHU-KONA, Hawaii - Rocco Mediate took the first-round lead Friday in the Champions Tour’s season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship.
Mediate shot a 9-under 63 at Hualalai Golf Course, playing the first seven holes in 6-under with four birdies and an eagle on the par-5 seventh. He added birdies on Nos. 10, 14 and 18 to finish a stroke ahead of 2012 winner Dan Forsman.
Mediate won twice last year in his first season on the 50-and-over tour after winning six times on the PGA Tour.
Forsman had an eagle, seven birdies and a bogey. Fred Couples, Fred Funk, Tom Pernice Jr. and Steve Elkington shot 65. Couples played the four par-5 holes in 6-under, eagling Nos. 4 and 7 and birdieing Nos. 10 and 14. Defending champion John Cook had a 69.
Golf leaderboard PGA TOUR HUMANA CHALLENGE p-PGA West Palmer Course (Par 72, 6,950 yards) n-PGA West Nicklaus Course (Par 72, 6,924 yards) q-La Quinta Country Club (Par 72, 7,060 yards) Patrick Reed ...................63p-63q-126 Brendon Todd.................65n-63p-128 Ryan Palmer...................64p-65q-129 Charley Hoffman ............64q-66n-130
ARKANSANS David Lingmerth ............69q-68n-137 Scott Gardiner ................68p-71n-139 John Daly .......................72q-68n-140 Bryce Molder ..................69p-72q-141 Ken Duke ........................71p-70q-141 - Complete scores, Page 7C
Sports, Pages 29 on 01/18/2014