Graeme McDowell and Shane Lowry grew up playing in wet, windy conditions in Ireland and on Saturday and it showed in the second round of the QBE Classic.
G-Mac (pictured left), the 2010 U.S. Open champion, and Lowry kick-started a bogey-free round of 8-under-par 64 with eagle-birdie in the alternate-shot format to tie Steve Stricker and Sean O’Hair for the lead at Tiburon Golf Club at the Ritz-Carlton Resort in Naples, Fla.
“On a day like today, with the wind blow about 25-to-30 miles an hour, a fast start was key,” McDowell said. “Making eagle-birdie really got us going. We both hit since nice shots and made some good putts.”
Added Lowry: “We said at the start of the week that we wanted to be able to have a nice dinner on Saturday night with a chance to win on Sunday, and we’ve done that.”
McDowell and Lowry have a 36-hole total of 18-under 126 to equal Stricker and O’Hair, who followed their opening 57 in the scramble format with a 69 that included four bogeys.
Brendan Steele and Keegan Bradley, who won this tournament in 2011, shot 70 and are two strokes back in third, while Lexi Thompson, the only woman in the field, and Tony Finau had a 66 and are one more down in fourth.
Pat Perez and Brian Harman totaled 68 and are four shots back in a tie for fifth with Billy Horschel and Jason Dufner, who had a 69, while Kevin Kisner and Kevin Chappell posted a 70 and are five behind in a tie for seventh with Gary Woodland and Daniel Berger, who also had a 70, and Bubba Watson and Brandt Snedeker, who came in at 72.
Kyle Stanley and Russell Henley shot 69 and are six back in 10th, while two-time Shootout champions Matt Kuchar and Harris England had a 72 and are nine behind in a tie for 11th with Charley Hoffman and Zach Johnson.
For complete results, visit https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard.html.
