Jason Day can thank a 35-foot miracle putt for keeping his A$2.6m Byron Nelson tournament title defence on life support on Saturday (AEST), with the Australian making the cut in a remarkable, 36th-hole scene.
The Australian, who won at TPC Craig Ranch last year, was flirting with the cut line at six-under as he came up the 18th hole.
Day then shockingly put his second shot in the water, forcing him to take a penalty drop, before a poor fourth shot left him with nearly 35-feet to save par.
The blunder was labelled as “completely inexcusable” in commentary, with the commentator adding: “I’ve seen some pretty tragic cuts in my day…”
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Only, Day ultimately wasn’t cut.
He somehow sank the monster putt to save par, and his tournament, while he looked a figure of bemusement after his rollercoaster hole.
Meanwhile, PGA Tour rookie Jake Knapp birdied four of his last six holes to grab a one-stroke lead after Friday’s second round.
The 29-year-old American fired a seven-under par 64 to stand on 14-under 128 after 36 holes at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.
“For the most part hitting it pretty solid and keeping in the right areas,” Knapp said. “Made it relatively easy on myself. Never really felt like I had to scramble or anything like that.” England’s Matt Wallace, who led after an opening 63, shared second on 129 with American Troy Merritt, who closed with a 16-foot eagle putt at the par-5 ninth to fire the day’s low round of 62.
World number 56 Knapp won his first PGA title at February’s Mexico Open and says he is not nervous about being in contention.
“I feel comfortable. I’ve been there before,” he said. “Courses like this where scores are going to be low you don’t worry too much about what other guys are doing. You try to make a bunch of birdies. If I just keep doing the things I’m doing I’ll be in a good spot.”
Knapp, a back-nine starter, sank an 11-foot birdie putt at 14 and reeled off three birdies in a row with a 30-foot birdie putt at 16, followed by another from just outside 18 feet at the par-3 17th and a two-footer at the par-5 18th.
“Just put a little bit more of a premium the last couple weeks on green reading,” Knapp said. “Nice to see a few more going in.” After a three-putt bogey on the third, Knapp answered with a 32-foot birdie putt on the par-3 fourth and a two-footer at the par-5 fifth, a 16-foot birdie putt at the par-3 seventh and a tap-in birdie at the par-5 ninth after reaching the green in two.
“Scores are going to be low,” Knapp said. “Just got to keep the pedal down and keep trying to make birdies.”
Two years ago, Knapp was working as a nightclub bouncer before going to a developmental tour in 2023 and earning a PGA Tour berth this year.
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“Even when I was doing any of that stuff I always knew this was what I wanted to do,” he said. “Just kept working away and sticking at it.”
Wallace had four birdies, an eagle and a bogey. The four-time European Tour winner seeks his second PGA triumph after last year’s Puntacana Championship.
“Really stuck in there well,” Wallace said. “Hitting the ball great off the tee. My long iron play can improve a little bit, but I still hit some really nice shots.”
Three-time major winner Jordan Spieth, who can complete a career grand slam by winning the PGA Championship in two weeks, fired a 70 to miss the cut on 138.
English 16-year-old amateur Kris Kim made the cut on 135 after shooting a 67, a birdie at 18 moving him off the cut line.
He’s the youngest player to make a PGA Tour cut since 16-year-old Kyle Suppa at the 2015 Sony Open in Hawaii.
SECOND-ROUND LEADERBOARD
Pos. Player R1 R2 Total
1 Jake Knapp 64 64 128 (-14)
T2 Troy Merritt 67 62 129 (-13)
T2 Matt Wallace 63 66 129 (-13)
4 Kelly Kraft 64 66 130 (-12)
Leading Aussie scores
T13 Harrison Endycott 67 66 133 (-9)
T25 Adam Scott 69 65 134 (-8)
T25 Min Woo Lee 66 68 134 (-8)
T54 Jason Day 66 70 136 (-6)
Source Agencies
