Aaron Wise equals lowest 36-hole score at PGA National to take Honda Classic lead
PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Aaron Wise didn’t wait until Saturday to make his big move at the Honda Classic.
Wise made two eagles in a four-hole stretch — taking advantage of the two par-5s on the Champion course — to vault into a three-shot lead at the halfway point of the Honda Classic at PGA National Resort & Spa, with Brandon Hagy and Matt Jones tied for second at 9-under.
Wise’s second consecutive 64 enabled him to shoot the lowest 36-hole score, 12-under 128, in the Honda Classic since the tournament moved to PGA National in 2007. Dan Pohl shot 128 when the event was held at TPC at Eagle Trace in 1989.
The eagles helped Wise land atop the leaderboard. He hit his second shot to 3 feet at the 18th hole (his ninth) and then rolled in a 46-footer at the par-5 third. He became just the seventh player to make two eagles in the same round on the Champion course in more than 6,000 rounds.
“They were really special,” Wise said. “I hit a great drive on No. 18 that left me just a 7-iron. Then I rolled in a bomb at No. 3 that was a bonus. Those two sparks in the round were huge.”
Honda Classic: Leaderboard
The 24-year-old Wise has won once on the PGA Tour, the 2018 AT&T Byron Nelson, and has nine career top-10s in 87 starts He started the Honda on Thursday with three consecutive birdies and shot a 64 that was overlooked because of Jones’ course-record-tying 61.
It was impossible to not notice Wise after the pair of eagles. It didn’t hurt he’s made 230 feet of putts the first two rounds. But he knows he’s only halfway home.
“It’s two great rounds of golf, and I love that I’m playing good,” he said. “This place can get to you pretty quick and there’s a lot of trouble out there.”
Not as much as usual, though. The Champ, normally one of the toughest tests on the PGA Tour, had played tamer this week with less rough and diminishing winds.
There have already been eight 64s or lower shot this week, equaling the tournament record at PGA National in 2012. There have been almost twice as many eagles (29) on the 18th hole as bogeys or worse (15).
Hagy started the week out of the Honda field, but when he moved up on the alternate’s list Tuesday, he caught an evening flight from Scottsdale, Ariz., to West Palm Beach. Wednesday, he awakened to a call from a PGA Tour official informing him he had made the field.
Who needs a practice round? Hagy had six birdies, an eagle and no bogeys Friday during his 62.
“I feel like I’m playing on a little bit of house money, so I kept it pretty loose out there,” Hagy said. “I just tried to have a good feeling for every shot and I am just kind of grateful for the opportunity.”
Jones could not match the magic of Thursday’s birdie-free 61. He bogeyed two of his first three holes Friday and only an eagle at the par-5 18th kept his round of 70 together.
“It’s always hard to follow up a really good round,” Jones said. “I didn’t feel like I was playing that bad. I still had a good day and I’m happy with where I’m at.”
Sam Ryder had a 63 to move into fourth place, four back. Jupiter’s Denny McCarthy (65), Shane Lowry (66), Scott Harrington (67) and 2014 Honda champion Russell Henley are tied for fifth at 7-under.
West Palm Beach resident Chase Koepka was in danger of missing the cut until he birdied all three holes of the Bear Trap (15, 16 and 17), becoming the 10th player since 2007 to do so in the same round. Koepka shot another 69 to move into 30th place and make his sixth cut in eight career PGA Tour starts.
“Today was one of those days where I really battled back,” Koepka said. “I felt like I was swinging it great, but I couldn’t really find the green, couldn’t really find the fairway.
“I told myself just to keep doing what I’m doing, because if I start second guessing myself out here on this golf course, you’re going to get beat up really quickly. I was just really proud of myself the way I battled.”
Fan favorite Phil Mickelson (68) overcame a triple bogey at the 11th hole with three birdies coming in to finish inside the 1-over cut line by two shots.
Lee Westwood was among the biggest names to miss the cut. Runner-up at the Players and Arnold Palmer Invitational the last two weeks (who played 54 holes at Augusta National this week), the 47-year-old Englishman finally ran out of gas Friday with a 78.
He still deserves kudos for honoring his commitment to play at the Honda.
