Defending champion Xander Schauffele will take a one shot lead, heading into moving day at the Sentry Tournament of Champions after shooting a five under par 68 on Friday.
The American seems to be carrying his great form of 2019 into the new year, which also saw him perform exceptionally well at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club during the Presidents Cup, as he went bogey-free for the round at Maui to finish on -8.
The 26-year-old birdied the 5th, 9th, 13th and 16th hole before concluding with an excellent four on the par 5 18th.
Overnight leader for the start of play on Friday, Joaquin Niemann, had a quiet round compared to his opening one, shooting one under par for the day as he went into the clubhouse one stroke behind Schauffele on -7.
The controversial figure of Patrick Reed had a magnificent day out on the Kapalua Plantation Course though, shooting eight under in a round that included eight birdies and one drop shop as he finished the day tied 2nd with Niemann.
Justin Thomas, who made a rousing start on Thursday with a round of 67 that left him in second place, failed to capitalise on his strong position in the second round as he dropped down to fifth after an even-par round of 73 that included a disappointing five bogeys.
Rickie Fowler and Patrick Cantlay are in good positions though to launch an attack on Saturday after rounds of 68 and 69, fourth and fifth place respectively.
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South Africa’s Dylan Frittelli started the second round tied 16th but a round of 77 saw him drop 15 places to where he’s now tied 31st with J.B. Holmes.
All eyes will be on Schauffele though on Saturday to see if he can continue his rise on the PGA TOUR and if he can go back-to-back at Kapalua in what seems to be a quite easy scoring course.
