US Open Round 2: Woodland leads Rose by two, Spectators injured, Reed’s outburst, Notables to miss cut and Koepka on disliking the Pebble Beach range
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Six things you missed from round 2: Woodland sets 36-hole record, spectators injured by a golf cart, Justin Thomas among notables to miss the cut, Reed’s angry outburst, Koepka’s dislike of Pebble’s driving range and Spieth’s new caddie drama
Gary Woodland will head in to the third round of the U.S. Open with a two shot lead over Justin Rose after going 27 holes without a bogey to set the lowest ever 36 hole total for a U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.
He sits two shots ahead of Justin Rose, three in front of Louis Oosthuizen, four clear of a group that includes Rory McIlroy and five shots better than Brooks Koepka – who skipped out on an afternoon range session because he isn’t a big fan of the practice area at Pebble Beach.
But while those players all have a notable chance at winning the third major of the year, Justin Thomas is one of the players who doesn’t, having missed the cut by two shots to finish on four-over-par with Jimmy Walker and Tony Finau.
Patrick Reed was one of the players to make the cut on the line, but not before he snapped his wedge over his knee en route to a double bogey on the 18th.
Elsewhere, a freak accident saw several spectators requiring medical attention after a runaway golf cart careered in to the crowds, and Jordan Spieth was left with more speculated caddie drama after he hit a hidden rake on the second hole.
Here’s what you need to know.
Gary Woodland sets 36-hole scoring records, leads by two
Gary Woodland set the 36-hole scoring record with a bogey-free 65 to grab a two shot lead over Justin Rose after the second round of the U.S. Open
Woodland, whose score tied the lowest ever round and set the 36-hole scoring record for a U.S. Open at Pebble at 9-under-par, did it in impressive style with a 50-footer for birdie on his final hole.
Starting his day at the 10th and four shots behind Justin Rose, Woodland made a good par at his opening hole before converting his first birdie of the day at the 12th from just over five feet.
It was a day where Woodland performed well on the greens, rolling in his next birdie from 17 feet on the 16th to make the turn in two-under.
A superb approach shot to the first hole moved Woodland to within one shot of the lead, and a 15-foot birdie putt on the 14th moved him up to the top of the laederboard with Justin Rose.
Just one hole later at the par-five sixth he gained another birdie to overtake Rose by one, and showed off his prowess on the eighth green with a 15-foot par-save to stay out in front.
At his last, the ninth, Woodland hit his second shot to the front of the green before making a 50-footer to increase his overnight lead to two.
Justin Rose sits two shots behind after a second round one-under 70, with Louis Oosthuizen a shot further back on six-under and Rory McIlroy and Aaron Wise on -5. A group of five players, including Matt Kuchar and defending champion Brooks Koepka, are tied for sixth at five-under.
Several spectators were left needing medical attention after a freak accident led to a golf cart crashing in to crowds by the 16th hole at the U.S. Open on Friday
According to reports, the accident occured when a box fell from the front seat of an unoccupied golf cart and on to the accelerator, sending it hurtling towards the crowds by the 16th fairway at Pebble Beach.
The California Highway Police said that a vendor had loaded the cart with boxes to make deliveries before parking it at the 16th hole and briefly walking away. The incident was reported at 10.20am local time.
When the cart began to move, eye witnesses described one person being hurt when he tried to remove the box from the accelerator, which likely forced the golf cart out of ‘park’ before it careered into spectators who were unable to move in time.
Eventually, someonoe was able to turn the wheel and force the box from the accelerator.
The USGA’s official statement said that four people were hurt, which included the vendor in charge of the golf cart. Two people were hospitalised after the crash, and were sent to the Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula.
The USGA statement read: “Unfortunately, during the second round of the US Open, there was an incident involving a golf cart on the 16th hole that resulted in three spectators and a vendor being injured and requiring medical treatment.
“We will continue to monitor their conditions.”
However, that statement comes at odds with the intiail reports from the Californian, who said that police had told them five people had been injured.
According to the California Highway Patrol’s report, one victim suffered a broken arm, another a spinal injury and a third suffered minor injuries.
The injured are as follows, according to the Highway Patrol, as first reported by the Californian:
A man, 82, from Modesto
A man, 58, from Modesto
A woman, 58, from Carmel
A man, 25, from Highland, Texas
A man, 43, from West Jordan, Utah.
Patrick Reed snaps wedge in anger
Patrick Reed is going to need a new wedge.
The 2018 Masters Champion took out his frustration on his wedge after fluffing a shot from the fringe of the 18th green and leaving it in the rough by snapping his club over his knee.
Reed found himself just over the back of the par-five green in three, but sent his next shot over in to the rough at the front of the green. After his first failed attempt, Reed tried again to chip out of the rough but fluffed it, before proceeding to snap his club.
He walked away with a double-bogey seven to finish at two-over-par and on the cut line, and will be out in the first group of the day on Thursday.
Brooks Koepka is not a fan of Pebble Beach’s driving range
Brooks Koepka was positive after a second round 69 that leaves him five shots behind Gary Woodland, but he decided not to head to the range afterwards for one specific reason: He doesn’t like the wind direction.
Koepka said he was struggling to strike it well on Monday and Wednesday, and it was easier to find his game on the course – not just because of wind, but the firmness of the grass.
“striking it just a little thin,” Koepka said of his ball striking issues earler in the week, “and then this range doesn’t quite help. It’s going into and off the left. It’s in a direction I hate. The turf on the range is a little firmer, a little tighter than it is on the golf course.
“And it’s been easier to find my game actually on the golf course. I feel like I can really be down on the ball, come in a little bit steeper than it is the range. The range is — I don’t know what it is. So I’m not going to hit balls today.”
Coach Claude Harmon echoed those sentiments in the commentary booth on Sky Sports, saying that it’s Brooks least favourite wind direction, so he won’t find anything good in his swing practicing in to it.
Who are we to argue with the logic? This is a guy who has won four majors in the last three years, and he feels confident with his game.
“I feel great, I’m excited and I’ve got a chance, so that’s all you can ask for,” Koepka said of his chances. “I just need to make a few putts, sometimes the hole just needs to open up. If I can get off to a good start tomorrow, have that feeling where the hole’s opening up, it could be a fun round.”
Justin Thomas among notable names to miss the cut
Justin Thomas skipped the PGA Championship with a wrist injury, and after missing the first cut on his return to Memorial, things were looking up when he finished T14 at the RBC Canadian Open.
But things didn’t go to plan for Thomas at Pebble Beach, posting back-to-back 73s to finish at four-over-par and miss the cut by two shots.
Tony Finau, Jimmy Walker and Ian Poulter also finished on +4, while two time PGA Tour winner this season Kevin Na ended up at +7.
Other notable names to miss the cut were Bubba Watson (+8) and Thomas Pieters (+10). For a full list, click here
Rake gate: Plenty of heat for Spieth over caddie Greller, but he takes the blame on this one
Word might have got out to Jordan Spieth about his blaming Greller for ‘two perfect shots’ ending up in the water and over the back of the green being all over the internet after round one.
After that incident, Greller said he didn’t even remember it and Spieth admitted he probably looked like the bad guy, but that didn’t stop twitter from suggesting Greller was going to get the blame again after Spieth hit a hidden rake in round two.
Spieth, who had driven the ball in to the bunker on the second hole (his 11th), tried to hit a shot out of the trap but it hit a rake hidden in the grass and advanced only a few feet out of the sand.
“Oh, there’s a rake there,” said a bewildered Spieth, to which Greller replied “Yes, there’s a rake there.”
It could have led to more caddie drama, and the pair didn’t exchange a word as they walked up the fairway as Spieth went on to make bogey, but afterwards, the three-time major champion said that one wasn’t on Greller. Neither of them had seen it.
“I mean, the ball was above my feet in almost a little downslope, and I was trying to hit a 6-iron 200 yards. So in the first place it was a really, really tough shot. But I had a clean lie. Thought I could clear the lip. And when I hit it, all I heard was like the rake. And I guess it slammed into the rake and came back and kind of buried down into the tall grass.
“So if it didn’t hit the rake, I don’t know if it had enough to get anywhere near the green or if it would have been way short or what, but certainly it would have been in a better position than it went to.
“And that’s on me. I just got to look at all options ahead of me. And if there’s rakes in front of the bunker, typically we pull them out. But when I was in it, I couldn’t see it. So it was kind of a weird set of events.
“Honestly, the only upsetting part was where the ball went after that, because it’s on me to hit the rake. Sometimes it’d hit the rake and pop up and be on the fairway, right? But it ended up in a pretty bad spot. I was — I did well a make a 5 for sure.”
He was then asked about his and Greller’s relationship, and he talked about the important and successful communication they have.
“I think our communication has been very successful over the last six, seven years. It’s kind of all the stuff I used to hold in my head before I’m able to kind of just fall out now. And it’s — it’s very important, especially when you’re trying to hit small greens… here at Pebble Beach, it’s nice to have somebody looking out for you.”
