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SILVIS, Ill. – Notes and observations from Friday’s second round of the John Deere Classic, where Patrick Rodgers blitzed his way to a two-shot lead after a 7-under 64. Rodgers will start the weekend at 13-under par, two clear of Bryson DeChambeau (65) and three ahead of former champion Zach Johnson (67) and overnight co-leader Charles Howell III (69). For more from TPC Deere Run check out the Daily Wrap. REAL RODGERS REEMERGES The first occasion Patrick Rodgers joined the lead at the John Deere Classic came back in 2013, and it was such a shock his father took a screenshot of the moment and had it framed. He was a 20-year-old amateur at the time ,and while highly touted as a future star, the moment still meant plenty to the Rogers clan. The fact he faded to T15 was of little consequence. Fast forward four years, and Rodgers is back in the lead at TPC Deere Run again. This time, it is not as much of a shock. Although, the now 24-year-old certainly hasn’t been setting the world on fire of late. Earlier this season, Rodgers had a T4 finish at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines, and it felt like the beginning of what could be a stellar season. Instead he missed nine cuts in his next 15 starts, with a best finish of T22 in that span. “I’ve struggled tee-to-green this year. The way I swung it my best in my career, I got pretty far off from that,â€� he admitted as he takes a two-shot lead to the weekend. “Most of my work the last two, three months is trying to get back to how I know I swing it my best, especially off the tee. Credit to my coach for putting in the time with me, because we’ve got it back to a place where I can contend and hopefully win a golf tournament.â€� Rodgers admitted frustration was building as each week passed without success, but he was determined to work his way out of the slump. He sits 107th in the FedExCup standings, but currently projects all the way to 31st if he can close the deal. “The only way I know how to handle it is just to put my head down and keep working,â€� he adds. “I’ve worked harder than I ever have and I’m more motivated.â€� HADLEY DREAMS OF WIN DOUBLE Chesson Hadley is nothing if not confident. A winner last week on the Web.Com Tour at the LECOM Health Challenge, the rangy North Carolina native is heading back to the PGA TOUR next season. But now, he has a chance to boost his status after a beautiful 7-under 64 Friday left him at 9-under par and tied fifth, just four back at the John Deere Classic. No stranger to winning on the big stage, Hadley feels relaxed as he tries to repeat his 2014 win at the Puerto Rico Open. He’s even packed his passport as he chases a spot in next week’s Open Championship. The John Deere Classic rewards a spot at Royal Birkdale for the highest finisher in the top 5 not already exempt. “You feel like you’re playing on house money a little bit but at the same time, there is still some work to be done,â€� Hadley said after securing his future last week. “There is a spot for the British this week. I did bring my passport. We got a long way to go before we start thinking about that. “I’ve put myself in a great position. Made some putts today, and I’m excited.â€� Hadley credited an attitude adjustment and something “secretâ€� with his swing to his form turnaround. “I’ve been heading in the right direction for a while, and I think it kind of starts with your attitude, how you think about and handle things,â€� he said. “I kind of finally got that right, and then everything came together last week obviously with the win on the Web. “Honestly I don’t really want to tell anybody (specifics). I found out what it was I’m doing, and I got on TrackMan and just checked the number and did a little bit of an experiment with ten balls, and liked the way it felt and certainly liked the way it was moving. “That’s the reason why I shot 7-under. I did hit some great shots, but would like to keep doing what I’m doing. Just not forget.â€� KISNER WANTS MORE FROM PUTTER Kevin Kisner walked off after a lovely 6-under 65 on Friday and was far from pleased. He was happy with the score on the board, which moved him to 8-under and tied for ninth. But he couldn’t shake his disappointment with his putting over the opening two rounds. As such, this year’s DEAN & DELUCA Invitational champion was headed right out to practice with his flat stick before he fires up for the weekend challenge ahead. While he’s been perfect inside 5 feet at TPC Deer Run, Kisner is just 2 of 6 from 5-10 feet, and hasn’t made the usual plethora of bombs he’s used to as the 20th-best putter on TOUR so far this season (Strokes Gained: Putting). This week, he sits 72nd in the field with the putter. “The ball striking has been pretty phenomenal. Keeping the ball in the fairway and on the greens and not really sweating too much out there. But I am really not that happy with the way I’m putting it, so I’m going to go work on that a little bit and hopefully get it rolling on the weekend,â€� Kisner said. “I think it always comes down to the guys that make putts. I hadn’t putted my best yet, so I am going to have to keep working on that. I know I am going to have to make some 15-, 20-footers on the weekend.â€� Kisner was happy to provide some highlights in the company of Presidents Cup captain Steve Stricker, his playing partner, as he heads towards making his first appearance for Team USA. LOCAL BOY LAPS IT UP Local Moline man David Lawrence was a late call-up as a sponsor invite this week, and boy did he enjoy the opportunity. Lawrence, known by his healthy gallery as “D-Lawâ€�, has been a mini-tour battler for some time, winning 21 times. But this was what he called “his majorâ€� as he got to showcase his skills on the PGA TOUR for the first time. He spent most of his round walking the rope lines rather than down the middle of the fairways, high fiving fans and volunteers and interacting with the estimated 200-300 people who followed his every move. After an opening round 73, the 27-year-old was facing an uphill battle to make the weekend, but he rebounded with three birdies in his opening five holes on Friday to give himself a chance. Sadly a pair of bogeys around the turn left him fighting once more, but birdies on 13 and 15 left him with three holes to find one more for a trip to the weekend. By the time he faced his approach on the 18th hole from the right rough, he was still searching, and as his approach made a beeline for the hole his heart was in his mouth. The pitch mark scared the hole but ultimately rolled past 23-feet and his birdie attempt just slid past leaving him one shot short. Still, he found the positives, and was hopeful this wouldn’t be the last time he would be seen on TOUR. In fact, in the second round he led the entire field in Strokes Gained: Putting, showing he can match it with the big guns. “I know that I am going to be playing hopefully a lot of these. I just can’t thank the support enough. I heard so many awesome cheers and roars, it’s emotional right now,â€� Lawrence said post round with tears in his eyes. “I love these people, it’s my home. It’s my community. My family and friends. I met so many awesome people. So many volunteers came up to me and said we are rooting for you, I hope it is the same for years to come. Lawrence said his efforts have given him renewed confidence to keep chasing his dreams. “We’ve got the game. I love that. I knew it but now I really know it. So that’s a huge confidence boost.â€� Fellow local Kurt Slattery, who eagled his last hole in Monday qualifying, did it again in a playoff to make the field, settled for a 71-75 to also miss the cut. ODDS AND ENDS Kevin Tway sat outside the cutline after he opened his second round with six straight pars. Then, he rattled off a career-record seven straight birdies. In a 10-hole stretch, he carded nine birdies before eventually signing for an 8-under 63. At 9-under, he is just four shots back. For the record, father Bob also once had seven straight birdies. “I was kind of hoping it would never stop,â€� he said. “I’m in good position going into the weekend. You’ve got to make a lot of birdies around here, so I’ll just keep trying to do that.â€� Bryson DeChambeau ranks 195th on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Putting, but he surged to second place through 36 holes after gaining 6.344 strokes on the field through two rounds with the flat stick (ranked third). The former U.S. Amateur champion made 140 feet, 10 inches worth of putts in Round 2. Jonathan Byrd, the 2007 John Deere Classic champion, casually moved himself into the mix with a second round 65. At 7-under, Byrd is looking for a sixth PGA TOUR win to get himself back off the Web.com Tour. His performances on the secondary tour thus far should be enough to secure a berth in the upcoming Web.com Tour Playoffs at very least. Presidents Cup captain and three-time John Deere Classic winner Steve Stricker fought back from his poor opening round with a 4-under 67 to make the cut on the 2-under number. Defending champion Ryan Moore was unable to repeat last season’s heroics, missing the cut after rounds of 74-71. Troy Merritt sits at 7-under and in the mix thanks to a pair of chip ins and an eagle hole out from 105-yards on the par-5 10th. Overnight co-leader Ollie Schniederjans struggled to a 3-over 74 to drop to 5-under. SHOT OF THE DAY CALL OF THE DAY BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Bud Cauley ... If the Safeway Open was a 54-hole affair in each of the last three years, he probably would have shoved his way into the Power Rankings. However, since 2017, he's finished T7, T46 and T44 after entering those final rounds positioned T3, T15 and T9, respectively. Part of the reason for the fades is the challenge of the course and the conditions, part of it is proof of how hard it is for any touring professional to put four rounds together, and yet another part of it is the learning curve on how to win a PGA TOUR event for the first time. This is his 184th TOUR start as a pro. Class is out for him at Silverado, so all he needs to do is put his skills back to work and trust in why he's had so many close calls. Polished off the regular season with a T15 at Sedgefield where a closing 65 was his lowest final-round aggregate on TOUR in over six years. Doc Redman ... With one season as a PGA TOUR member under his belt, and a successful one at that (71st in the FedExCup), his star continues to rise. Only 22 years of age, he lived amongst the most consistently strong ball-strikers in 2019-20, ranking T13 in fairways hit, ninth in total driving and 12th in greens in regulation. His putting was at TOUR average, so he profiles as a talent who should contend in shootouts. That's not the setup at Silverado where he missed the cut in his debut a year ago, but with a T3 at Sedgefield highlighting four top 25s since play resumed, he won't have to dig deep to connect with the feels of good form. Carlos Ortiz ... Embarks on his fifth season as a PGA TOUR member after finishing 51st in the FedExCup with a T25 at the BMW Championship. While impressive, it was his lowest ranking after he logged a T4 at the Sanderson Farms Championship in his second start. The following week, he finished T40 at Silverado to improve his record to 4-for-4, albeit sans a top 30. His scoring average in 16 rounds here is 70.94. Accentuates an average game off the tee and into targets with masterful touch around greens. With his knowledge of the undulations and the confidence of another solid season behind him, he projects to record a personal best this week. Vincent Whaley ... No longer a rookie, but he was one of four among his outgoing class who competed in the Korn Ferry Tour's Lincoln Land Championship presented by LRS last week. He beat them all with a T17 after opening with a 63. (He placed T3 in the same event on the same track last year.) When he cut his teeth on the KFT in 2019, the Georgia Tech product was the sum-is-greater-than-hits-parts guy at 13th in the all-around with nothing specific about his game standing out. A bonus is that he finished T13 in par-5 scoring. A year later and little has changed analytically despite the absence of experience at this level. Now he's benefited by cycling through familiar venues. That includes Silverado where he missed the cut despite birdies (and no bogeys) on half of the par 5s that he played. Joohyung (Tom) Kim ... It's impossible to overlook what he's already achieved abroad. He first attracted serious attention with a T4 in Singapore in January. That yielded an exemption into the 2020 Open Championship that eventually was canceled. He won thrice internationally in 2019, and did so again in the KPGA this past July. That was in advance of his PGA TOUR debut at the PGA Championship where he missed the cut. Currently leading the KPGA in scoring average, sixth on the Asian Tour's Order of Merit and 111th in the Official World Golf Ranking (after climbing to a career-best 92nd two months ago). Oh yeah, he turned 18 in June. NOTE: Sleeper is a relative term, so Rob uses unofficial criteria to determine who qualifies. Each of the following usually is determined to be ineligible for this weekly staple: Winners of the tournament on the current host course; winners in the same season; recent major champions; top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking; recent participants of team competitions.
