Scottie Scheffler has enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top of the world rankings. He made a little more personal history on Friday at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson:

His lowest score through 36 holes on the PGA Tour.

After missing last year’s CJ Cup Byron Nelson, Scheffler returned to McKinney, Texas, with a vengeance. The world No. 1 shot 61 on Thursday and backed it up with a 63 on Friday to get to the clubhouse at 18 under, good for a six-shot lead over Sam Stevens.

TPC Craig Ranch is one of the easiest courses on the PGA Tour and has produced low scores in each of the four editions of its Tour event, with winning scores ranging from 23 under to 26 under since the event moved there in 2021. But no one has ever had a 36-hole start like Scheffler.

Scheffler’s record-setting start began on Thursday with a bogey-free 10-under 61, the second-lowest round of his PGA Tour career. He made four consecutive birdies from the third hole to the sixth and put an exclamation on his front nine with a tap-in eagle at the par-5 ninth. He made three more birdies on the back nine for a two-shot lead over Rico Hoey and Jhonattan Vegas, who each shot 63.

On Friday, conditions were extremely soft after a six-hour weather delay stopped play. Through eight holes in the morning, Scheffler was even par for the round and 10 under for the tournament. He then made an eagle on the par-5 ninth hole just as the horn blew with electricity in the area.

After the delay, Scheffler turned it on. He birdied six of the nine holes on the back nine, taking advantage of the receptive greens.

Through his two rounds, Scheffler ranks 12th in approach, 9th off the tee and 11th in putting.

Due to the weather delay, roughly half of the field still needed to complete the second round, but given how he's playing, Scheffler will be tough to catch.

More Golf Coverage on Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Scottie Scheffler Shoots Best 36-Hole Score of His Career, Seizes 6-Shot Lead.

Test hyperlink for boilerplate