PGA TOUR: Taylor Pendrith leads by two points at 3M Open, FedExCup playoff contender eliminated in Minnesota
Halfway through the PGA TOUR 3M Open in Minnesota, Canadian Taylor Pendrith shot a stunning second-round 64 to take a two-stroke lead.
Pendrith fired seven birdies in windy conditions at TPC Twin Cities to move to 12 under par, continuing his bogey-free start to the week and outscoring nearest rival Matt Nessmith. The world’s 59th-ranked player holed a 55-foot putt on the par-three fourth and birdied the seventh to reach the turn at 33, while Pendrith added more birdies at the 10th, 12th and 15th.
Pendrith holed a 30-foot putt on the par-three fourth 16th and birdied another at the final par-five to move himself to the top of the leaderboard as he chases his second PGA Tour victory of the season. \ “Today was quite difficult with the wind,” said Pendrit. \ “I really didn’t have many good views at the first hour, I would say on the golf course and I could stay patient and make a couple, made a longer couple, which was good. \
Nonmit, in search of his first PGA Tour title after losing in the playoffs at the Isco championship at the start of the month, compared 64 Pendrith to hold the solo in second place ahead of Andrew Putnem and the leader of the first round of Jacob Bridgame. The 3M Open is the penultimate tournament of the regular season, and only the top 70 players in the FedExCup standings after next week’s Wyndham Championship will qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs.
Doug Ghim, Lanto Griffin, Jonathan Vegas and Alex Smalley enter the weekend in fifth place in the season standings, well outside the current top 70 players, while Matt Kuchar and former U.S. Open champion Gary Woodland are tied for ninth, five spots behind the leader.
Place. The tournament’s highest-ranked player, world No. 11 Saheesh Sigala, is also struggling at seven under par, along with Sam Burns and former British Open champion Stewart Cink, while 2022 champion Tony Finau is one stroke away from qualifying in 18th place.
Nick Dunlap (64th in the FedEx Cup rankings), Luke List (71st) and defending champion Lee Hodges (73rd) all missed out, and Haydn Buckley was eliminated early despite a hole-in-one on the par-three 17th hole.
