Jason Dufner has been struggling, so he switched almost everything, but nothing seemed to work.
Then Duf equaled his career-low with an 8-under-par 63 to take a one-stroke lead over Max Homa and Joel Dahmen midway through the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow Club www.quailhollowclub.com in Charlotte, N.C.
“This is my fourth caddie of the year so far,” said the 42-year-old Dufner, who captured the 2013 PGA Championship for one of his five PGA Tour victories. “I left (his coach) Chuck Cook, started doing some other things. I started working with Phil Kenyon. I think I’m on my fourth or fifth putter this year. I’m on my fourth or fifth driver, my fourth or fifth golf ball, fourth or fifth lob wedge. I’m trying to find stuff that’s going to work.
“(We’ll) see how it goes being in the heat of it on Saturday and Sunday. I’ve been there before. It’s been a while, but I kind of know what to expect. It will be a good challenge to see where I’m at, what I’m doing.”
Whatever Dufner tried in round two seemed to work, as he chipped in from 35 yards at No. 1 for the first of his seven birdies and holed a 23-foot birdie putt on the seventh hole en route to a 36-hole score of 11-under 131.
Homa, from Valencia and the 2013 NCAA champion while at Cal, collected eight birdies and had no bogeys his own 63, while Dahmen made his first bogey of the tournament on his last hole of the day, No. 9, in a second straight 66.
Being back with longtime friend and caddie Joe Greiner has helped Homa, who said he struggled when he first got to the PGA Tour because he felt he had to play perfect golf.
“Joe stayed with me until it became financially irresponsible for him to work for me,” said Homa, whose only two professional victories came on the Web.com Tour.
“My attitude is awesome nowadays. I don’t really get too down on myself. I have an awesome, awesome caddie who doesn’t let me. If I’m quiet, he yells at me and tells me quiet golfers are usually very mean to themselves, so we have a good thing going.
Fourth-ranked McIlroy, the only two-time champion in tournament history who shared the first-round lead with Dahmen at 66, came back with a 70 and is five strokes behind in a tie for fourth with Patrick Reed, who totaled 69.
Defending champion Jason Day of Australia recorded a 69 and is another shot down in a tie for sixth with second-ranked Justin Rose of England, who finished at 67, Seamus Power of Ireland, who wound up at 68, and Pat Perez, who also had a 68.
Kyle Stanley totaled 69 and is seven back in a tie for 10 with Sebastian Munoz (70) of Chile, Martin Laird (71) of Scotland and Brendan Todd (70).
Lucas Glover, the 2011 champion at Quail Hollow, shot 69 and is tied for 14th, 10th-ranked Rickie Fowler of Murrieta is tied for 28th after a 70, and 2017 Wells Fargo champion Brian Harman stumbled to a 75 and is tied for 62nd.
Phil Mickelson shot 71-76—147 and missed the cut by four strokes, while J.B. Holmes, the 2014 champion, withdrew after opening with an 80.
For complete results, visit https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard.html
