Sam Burns got mad early in round two of the Safeway Open, and then he got going.
The 24-year-old Burns hit his tee shot into the water on the 11th hole of the North Course at Silverado Resort and Spa en route to a double-bogey 5, but went on to shoot 7-under-par 65 and take a two-stroke lead over Harry Higgs, who shot 62.
“(The double-bogey) pissed me off a little bit,” said Burns, whose best finish on the PGA Tour was a tie for third in the 2019 Sanderson Farms Challenge. “It woke me up, I guess. It was early, cold. It was kind of like it picked me up, like, ‘Hey, let’s go.’
“I’m just going to go out tomorrow and focus on what I can control. For me, that’s on my mind and that’s picking good targets and hitting shots. … (I’m) just trying to stick to that and do whatever I can to keep trying to get better. So if that’s a win this week, great. If it’s not, I can accept that.”
The first event of the 2020-21 PGA Tour is being played without spectators, like every other tournament since the restart in June following the shutdown because of the Coronavirus pandemic.
Burns, who was named winner of the 2017 Jack Nicklaus Award as College Division I Player of the Year while at LSU and won the 2018 Savannah Golf Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour, reeled off five birdies on the rest of the back nine and added four more coming home on the front to record a 36-hole total of 15-under 129.
Higgs, who won the 2018 Diners Cup Peru Open on the PGA Latinoamerica Tour and the 2019 Price Cutter Charity Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour, finished off his 62 by holing his second shot from 231 yards with a 4-iron for a double eagle, or albatross, on the ninth hole.
“I might be too jacked up to actually fall asleep,” said Higgs, who threw his club onto the ground and raised his arms into the air after hearing a volunteer yell, ‘It’s in the hole, it’s in the hole.’
“I’m sure it looked funny and ridiculous. I’m sure it could probably be a ‘Not top-10 play’ (on ESPN) just based on the poor reaction that I gave it. But no, I mean, what a great way to finish. I had a little panic freak-out, jumped for joy and then I threw my club.”
First-round leader Russell Knox of Scotland followed his opening 63 with a 69 by making birdies on his last two holes and is three shots back in a tie for third with Cameron Percy of Australia, who sank a four-foot birdie putt to cap a 68, and D.J. Trahan, who had a bogey-free 65.
James Hahn of Alameda and Cal made four birdies on the last five holes to shoot 65 and is one more back in a tie for fourth with Doug Ghim, who had a 66.
Pat Perez of San Diego followed a 65 with a 69 and is five down in a tie for eighth with Rob Oppenheim, who made three birdies on each nine in a bogey-free 66, Tom Hoge, who finished at 68, and Brian Stuard, who carded a second straight 67.
Two-time Safeway champion Brendan Steele of Idyllwild and UC Riverside is tied for 12th after a 70, while Phil Mickelson, who won in his debut on the PGA Tour Champions his last start, shot 67 and is tied for 34th, and Sahith Theegala of Chino Hills and Pepperdine, the 2020 College Player of the Year who is making his PGA Tour debut, totaled 68 and is tied for 53rd.
Reigning British Open champion Shane Lowry of Ireland, warming up for the U.S. Open next week at Winged Foot, missed struggled to a 73 and missed the cut by two strokes.
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