Second-round leader Martin Flores shot his second straight 6-under 66 on the rain-softened course to lead by one at the RBC Canadian Open.
‘The course is perfect,’ said Flores, winless on the PGA TOUR. ‘But it is a little soft right now, especially coming into the greens as compared to previous years. So the birdies are going to be out there for sure. Unless the wind picks up, but I think it’s very gettable.’
He eagled the par-5 second for the second day in a row.
‘I hit a great drive,’ Flores said. ‘I had about 185 yards. Hit a nice 7-iron to 15, 20 feet and made the putt. That was a bonus.’
Gary Woodland (63), Matt Every (68) and Brandon Hagy (68) were a stroke back at 11 under. Woodland was a stroke off the course record of 62, set by Leonard Thompson in 1981.
‘I just had everything clicking today,’ Woodland said. ‘I’ve been playing well for a long time and just haven’t put all the aspects together. Today I drove it well. Obviously, the ball-striking was good and I saw some putts go in, and that adds up to a pretty good number.’
Vijay Singh, at 54 the oldest player in the field, had a 68 to join Kevin Chappell (69), Ryan Ruffels (67), Charley Hoffman (66) and Harold Varner III (65) at 10 under.
‘If I turn up at a golf tournament and know that I can’t win, I might as well go home,’ Singh said. ‘I just have to work hard and bring it to the golf course. Otherwise, might as well not show up. So that’s what I’m doing.’
‘I’ve come here a lot of times,’ Singh said. ‘I’ve played this golf course many a times. Pretty familiar with what the golf course gives you.’
Defending champion Jhonattan Vegas was 9 under after a 69.
Top-ranked Dustin Johnson shot 69 to reach 8 under. Graham DeLaet (68) and Mackenzie Hughes (69) were the only two of the 17 Canadians to make the cut, also completing 36 holes at 8 under.
At the same mark are two South Africans, Rory Sabbatini and Tyrone Van Aswegen, after the prior shot 66 on Friday. Van Aswegen began the day one off the pace, but failed to replicate Thursday’s magic and had to settle for a 70.
Veteran duo Ernie Els and Retief Goosen both missed the cut.
‘I wish there were 17 Canadians 8 under or better,’ Hughes said. ‘It would have been really fun to get a bunch of guys in the mix, but yeah, it’s nice to have Graham in there and not to be the Lone Ranger going out there on the weekend.’
Bubba Watson matched playing partner Kuchar at 5 under, following an opening 66 with a 73.
Photo: PGA TOUR
