Scheffler’s Tour Championship lead has shrunk to four strokes

Starting the day with a seven-stroke lead in the Tour Championship, Scheffler after 36 holes he was just four strokes back after shooting a 5-under 66 on Friday at East Lake Golf Club.

Collin Morikawa, playing with world No. 1 Scheffler on the final par, made nine birdies en route to an 8-under 63. After a streak of tournament scoring starts gave Scheffler a two-stroke lead to start the week, Scheffler is at 21 under par and Morikawa is 17 under par..

Xander Schauffele re-enters the fraywith an impeccable 64 that pushed him to 16 under par. No one else is closer at 12 under, with Sahith Theegala, Wyndham Clark and Australian Adam Scott tied.

Scheffler put some distance between himself and the others after opening with a 65 on Thursday. Schauffele and Morikawa counterattacked on Fridaywhich made the final push for the FedEx Cup even more interesting.

“I mean, it’s the second round of the tournament. It’s the second round,” Scheffler said. “It was a long tournament. I was just trying to do everything I could to hang in there and make the shots, and I did that well today.”

There was no 36-hole cut Friday, as the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup standings compete for the season-long championship. The winner after 72 holes will take home the FedEx Cup and a $25 million prize.

Scheffler, Morikawa and Schauffele were among the eight players left on the field in Lightning interrupted the rotation. After one hour and 33 minutes, the players returned to their positions as the sun set.

Scheffler birdied the 16th hole, but Morikawa responded with an 8-foot putt for birdie on the 17th after Scheffler tried to whistle the hole. They played the par-5 18th hole exactly the same way, hitting their third shots just a few feet from the hole and finishing with birdies.

Scheffler, 28, who is vying for his first FedEx Cup title, said his seven-shot lead was a product of some of his competitors missing their best material in the first round.

“Today was a day where I had a ‘big lead,'” Scheffler said, using air quotes, “but there was a big group of guys out there, so obviously some guys were going to play well. But I did a great job staying in my own world and had a good round of golf.

However, Morikawa was asked if he enjoyed the opportunity to play with Scheffler after Schauffele was paired with him in Round 1.

“Quite a bit,” Morikawa said. “He’s such a good player that you know he’s going to keep playing low and making birdies. I’ve seen that myself. I’ve seen that for years. For me, it’s just keeping my foot on the gas and sticking to my game plan.”

Scheffler and Morikawa both made birdies on the third, sixth and eighth holes, but Morikawa also made one on the long par-4 seventh after he hit his approach shot to within 3 1/2 feet.

A group ahead, Schauffele went back to work, making up for the 1-under 70 he shot Thursday. The No. 2 player in the world made four birdies on the front nine, including putts from 18 1/2 and 14 1/2 feet.

Schauffele birdied the par-3 11th, but was still six shots behind as Scheffler birdied the 10th hole moments later. But Scheffler hit from bunker to bunker on the 13th hole and couldn’t convert a saved 9-foot par, and Schauffele quickly birdied the 14th hole for his sixth birdie and put the swing within two shots.

The PGA and Open champion ended his day with a birdie on the 18th hole.

“Being two shots behind and then finishing 1 under par yesterday and him playing the lowest round of the day, it just wasn’t the start he needed,” Schauffele said. “Now I have a sense of urgency to try to get some points.”

Theegala, a 26-year-old playing in his second Tour Championship, birdied four of his last five holes to rally for a 66. Clark and Scott shot 67s, and the Clark’s highlight was an eagle putt of 15 feet on the 14th hole.

“It’s going to be very difficult to catch (Scheffler),” Clark said. “He doesn’t have to play his best and I have to play amazing.”

Sam Burns (68) is tied for seventh at 11 under par. Tony Finau carded a 66 to start the day and was placed at 9 under par, tied with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama (70).