Brendan Steele shot 5-under-par 67 and moved into a tie for lead with Matt Kuchar midway through the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.
Steele (pictured), of UC Riverside and the village of Idyllwild in Southern California, followed his opening 65 by making four birdies in a span of five holes through No. 7 as he finished on the front nine. He had two birdies and his only bogey at No. 16 on the front side.
“A lot of things are going right,” said Steele, whose only PGA Tour victory came in the 2011 Valero Texas Open. “Obviously, conditions are really good. So there are a lot of good scores out there.
“The greens are rolling perfect. They’re pretty soft. If you’re in good position off the tee, you can really get after it. Yeah, hitting a lot of good shots and holing a few more putts than normal, which is kind of how you end up being high. Yeah, that’s really all that’s going on.”
Kuchar carded a second 66 with birdies on four of five holes while also finishing on the front.
“The conditions are still there for the taking,” said Kuchar, who won the Memorial in 2013. “It’s as easy as I remember this place playing, even though the greens are still fast. You can get in the wrong spot, but you don’t have to worry too much about the wind. It’s fun to be out there playing and making some birdies around this place.”
Gary Woodland posted a 65 that included a three-foot eagle putt on the 15th hole after a brilliant shot from 225 yards, and was two strokes back in a tie for second with Emiliano Grillo of Argentina, who made his lone bogey on No. 16 in a 66.
Dustin Johnson, who led the first-round lead with a 64, turned in an uneven 71 and was three shots behind in a tie for fifth with Harold Varner III, who had a 67, Kevin Streelman, who totaled 68, and Jon Curran, who came in at 67.
Adam Hadwin of Canada shot 67 and was another stroke behind in a tie for ninth with Scott Brown and Zac Blair, who both had 68s.
Top-ranked Jason Day of Australia recorded a 71 and was five shots back in a tie for 12th with third-ranked Rory McIlroy (66) of Northern Ireland, Phil Mickelson (69), Charl Schwartzel (69) of South Africa, Geoff Ogilvy (69) of Australia, Lucas Glover (67), Hudson Swafford (71), K.J. Choi (69) of South Korea, Keegan Bradley (69) and Ryan Moore (67).
Second-ranked Jordan Spieth was another stroke down in a tie for 22nd after a 68.
