The American Express: Round 2 leaderboard

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Johnny Miller is retiring, and cheese whiz will never be the same. Miller and his longtime broadcast partner, Dan Hicks, met the media Friday as they brace for the final telecast of Miller’s illustrious career at the Waste Management Phoenix Open on Saturday. Miller reminisced about his 29 years in the broadcast booth and his illustrious playing career before that, but the atmosphere was one of raucous laughter more than tears. Asked if there was a Miller quirk that he will miss after sitting next to the outspoken legend for the last three decades, Hicks didn’t hesitate. His answer: liquid cheese. “If had to single out one thing that I think typifies Johnny is and it’s going to sound crazy see but it’s cheese whiz,â€� Hicks said. “Easy Cheese whiz, there’s a brand.â€� The assembled media laughed uneasily as Miller, a World Golf Hall of Famer and eight-time Emmy nominee, nodded in agreement. “So, Johnny would get in,â€� Hicks added. “I would look over there and he would have the nozzle of the cheese whiz thing implanted, basically mainlining cheese whiz like — and I go, ‘You’re actually sticking that in your mouth. The rest of us probably shouldn’t be using this.’ So, our illustrious stage manager, Kathy, would actually put a piece of gaffer’s tape on it, on the cheese whiz bottle.â€� Miller also did almost half of his 232 telecasts in bare feet, Hicks added. And Miller said his TV career almost last just a single day at the 1990 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. “I quit after the first day,â€� he said. “It was like, Holy mackerel, what have I got into? I’m not an announcer, I’m a player. They said, ‘It would be good if you could at least finish out the tournament, you know.’â€�  But it was the cheese whiz story that stole the show. Miller has about 20 friends and family members here this week, and many of them assembled at the NBC crew’s hotel Thursday night to toast the departure of a broadcast legend. The twist: They raised cans of Easy Cheese. “This week has just been This Is Your Life,â€� Hicks said, “and we have been just kind of going over all the great memories of having Johnny at 18. But I would say cheese whiz is at the top of the list, believe it or not.â€�

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A drivable par-4 and several of the game’s biggest stars. There’s a lot to love about this week’s PGA TOUR LIVE coverage. Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Justin Thomas and Patrick Reed are among the names that can be seen this week on PGA TOUR LIVE’s broadcast from the Travelers Championship. There will also be plenty of coverage of TPC River Highlands’ most famous hole, the drivable par-4 15th. PGA TOUR LIVE will broadcast between 7 a.m. Eastern and 6:30 p.m. on both Thursday and Friday. The coverage will switch to Featured Holes at 3 p.m. The drivable, par-4 15th and the par-3 16th are this week’s holes. PGA TOUR LIVE also will be available on Twitter for approximately 90 minutes, beginning at 7 a.m. Here’s a look at this week’s Featured Groups. Click here to subscribe to PGA TOUR LIVE. (Note: FedExCup rankings in parentheses) THURSDAY Brian Harman (10), Jim Furyk (137), Rory McIlroy (69): Furyk will play alongside a fellow FedExCup champ and one of this season’s breakout stars as he returns to the site of last year’s historic 58. McIlroy, the reigning FedExCup champ, is making his debut at this event after missing the cut in the U.S. Open. Harman, who finished T2 at Erin Hills, ranks in both the top 10 of the FedExCup (10) and the U.S. Presidents Cup standings (9). He’s finished in the top 10 in four of his past six starts, including a win over FedExCup leader Dustin Johnson at the Wells Fargo Championship and his U.S. Open runner-up. Tee time: 7:50 a.m. Eastern off 10th tee. Justin Thomas (3), Patrick Reed (75), Jason Day (45): Thomas and Reed are fresh off top-15 finishes at the U.S. Open, while Day is trying to rebound from his missed cut at Erin Hills. Thomas (T9) played in the final group last week after an electric 63 in the third round, while Reed (T13) posted his best career finish in a U.S. Open. Day’s top finish this season has been a runner-up finish at the AT&T Byron Nelson. Thomas and Day will see each other at this year’s Presidents Cup, as well, as both players rank second on their respective team’s point list. Reed, who’s nicknamed “Captain America� for his stellar play in international team events, is 11th in the U.S. standings; the top 10 on Sept. 4 will automatically qualify for the team. Tee time: 8 a.m. Eastern off 10th tee. FRIDAY Bubba Watson (109), Marc Leishman (15), Russell Knox (57): Three past winners of the Travelers Championship are in this group. Knox won last year with a dramatic 12-foot par putt on the last hole. Leishman, the 2009 Rookie of the Year, earned his first PGA TOUR win here in 2012. He earned his second victory earlier this year at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard. Watson is a two-time winner at TPC River Highlands (2010, ’15) and has finished in the top 10 in half of his 10 starts there. Tee time: 7:50 a.m. Eastern off 10th tee. Jordan Spieth (6), Brandt Snedeker (44), Wesley Bryan (22): Two former PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year, Spieth and Snedeker, are paired with a favorite for this season’s award. Wesley Bryan won the RBC Heritage and has four other top-10s. Spieth, the 2015 FedExCup champ, is making his debut at this event, while Snedeker has finished 11th and 10th in the past two Travelers. Snedeker won the FedExCup in 2012. Tee time: 8 a.m. Eastern off 10th tee.

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Dustin Johnson putted for birdie on every hole Friday and shot a 4-under 67, leaving him bogey-free for 36 holes and two shots ahead of Rory McIlroy and Matt Kuchar going into the weekend at the Mexico Championship.

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