Russell Henley kept his place, but he knows there is a long way to go.
Henley, who is seeking his fifth PGA Tour victory and eighth as a professional, posted a four-under-par 66 to hold a one-stroke lead over Billy Horschel midway through the 83rd Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C.
“I’ve got to play all 72 holes,” said Henley, who still is haunted by blowing the lead in the final round of the Wyndham two years ago and missing out on a six-man by finishing in a tie for seventh after a 71. “It’s just hard to do, hard to finish it off, but I’m excited hopefully for another good weekend.
“I was leading the tournament through 10 holes in the final round (in 2021). I birdied No. 10 on Sunday and felt like I was in control of the tournament. I had a couple of three-putts, missed a couple short ones and made a couple bad swings on the back, and missed out on the playoff by one shot. It definitely stings to kind of lose it right there, because I played so well the first 60 holes, or whatever.
“I think my putting’s been really solid this week. I haven’t looked at the stats, but my putting’s been good and I feel like my approach game when I’m in the fairway has been pretty good. I just have to keep it up on the weekend.”
This is the final regular-season event on the PGA Tour and the top 70 players in the FedEx Cup standings will advance to the playoff opener next week, the FedEx St. Jude Championship at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tenn.
The following week, the top 50 players will play in the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Ill., with the top 30 advancing to the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
Henley, who opened with a bogey-free 62, regained the lead by making three of his five birdies on the last five holes in his 66 and recorded a 36-hole score of 12-under-par 128.
Horschel, who has won seven times on the PGA Tour but has been struggling since he captured the 2022 Memorial Tournament, holed out from 94 yards on the fourth hole and had three of his seven birdies down the stretch to go against one bogey as he equaled Henley’s opening 62.
“I know I haven’t done a lot lately, but I’ve been working very hard and feel things coming back around,” said Horschel, who won the Tour Championship to claim the FedEx Cup in 2014. “My game has felt much better the last six weeks, and especially the last two, when I’ve started to see some good results.
“I’m just playing really solid golf and I never put myself in trouble today. I missed a putt on No. 6 to make my only bogey, but I putted really well other than that. The golf ball listened on that shot on the fifth hole and went right in. It’s always a bonus when something unexpected like that happens.
“I know I’m heading in the right direction and it was great to play a round like that today because I haven’t done that lately.”
Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion, collected seven birdies against a lone bogey in his 64 and is two shots behind in a tie for third with Brendon Todd, who made four birdies on each nine in a 63, Adam Svensson of Canada, who birdied three of the first five holes to temporarily take the lead from Henley en route to a 67, and Byeong Hun An of South Korea, who sank a 67-foot eagle putt on No. 15 after starting on the back nine and holed out from 94 yards for another eagle on his final hole to cap a 67.
Rookie Ludvig Aberg of Sweden sank a four-foot eagle putt on the fifth hole after a brilliant approach shot from 194 yards and added four birdies in a second straight 66 to sit four down in solo seventh.
Brandon Wu of Danville and Stanford sank a 15-foot eagle putt on the fifth hole and added four birdies while finishing his 65 on the front nine and is five shots behind in a tie for eighth with Troy Merritt, who had five birdies on his first 10 holes en route to a bogey-free 63, Stephan Jaeger of Germany, who birdied three of his last six holes for a 66, and J.T. Poston, who birdied two of the last four in a 68.
Two-time PGA champion Justin Thomas, the 2017 FedEx Champion who started the week No. 79 in the point standings and is in danger of missing the playoffs, stayed alive by making three birdies on the back nine to follow his 70 with a 65 and is tied for 21st.
However, Thomas still has work to do on the weekend as he is projected to finish No. 75 in the FedEx Cup standings.
For complete results, third-round tee times and the FedEx Cup standings, visit: https://www.pgatour.com/leaderboard
